Skydiving plane searching over the water at Muriwai beach shortly after the incident. Video / Supplied
A British skydiver who plummeted to her death off the Muriwai coast following a mid-air collision has been honoured this morning during an emotional beachside blessing.
"I'm sorry SJ that it didn't work out," Muriwai Beach head lifeguard Glenn Gowthorpe told the gathering.
"We tried our best."
Sarah-Jane "SJ" Bayramdied last Thursday when a nine-person formation "sunset" jump with Skydive Auckland went horribly wrong.
It is understood she collided with a fellow jumper and fell unresponsive into the water about 1km offshore. Incredibly, another skydiver is believed to have activated Bayram's parachute following the collision.
Two surfers saw Bayram plummeting off course and raced to reach her in a jetski, hauling her onto their craft and desperately performing CPR until Gowthorpe and another volunteer surf lifeguard arrived and ferried Bayram back to shore, where she later died.
Friends, colleagues and first responders gather at Muriwai Beach for a whakawātea blessing ceremony following the death of a British skydiver. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
This morning about 60 people gathered at the Muriwai volunteer surf lifesaving club to remember Bayram, shedding silent tears together against the background roar of the Tasman Sea.
The whakawātea ceremony (whaka means to "cause", and wātea means to "empty") is done to clear an area of any malignant force or spirit, rendering it safe for daily activities to return to normal.
The blessing involved grieving members of the skydiving community, first responders who rushed to her aid, emergency workers, local iwi and Bayram's colleagues from the University of Auckland.
Led by Ngāti Whātua kaumātua Glen Wilcox, the ceremony first blessed the lifesaving club and the gear used in Thursday's dramatic rescue.
Those gathered then made their way down to the beach, shed their shoes and slowly marched into the ocean shallows.
As the sun burned down, a cool onshore breeze stirred along the shimmering sand. A handful of swimmers frolicked in the water and surfers caught rides on the gentle waves.
The mourners clutched each other and cried as they gazed solemnly out to the spot where Bayram lost her life.
Sarah-Jane Bayram died on Thursday in a skydiving tragedy over Muriwai Beach in West Auckland. Photo / Supplied
It is understood her overseas-based family were aware of the ceremony and had asked for it to be filmed.
Wilcox told the gathering the traditional ritual would help "clear the tragedy", but departed loved ones would never be forgotten.
"It's a sad story, and it's life."
Gowthorpe also addressed the gathering, saying the speed of the rescue response had given Bayram the best possible chance of survival.
Muriwai was renowned for its raw beauty, which drew countless people to its shores. But that beauty was laced with great danger and the area had claimed many lives.
"It's a paradise and unfortunately in this situation it was tragedy in paradise.
"SJ had the best response that anyone could have hoped for."
Grieving friends of British skydiver Sarah-Jane Bayram gather in her honour during an iwi blessing near where she died at Muriwai Beach. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
But despite the best efforts of rescuers, Bayram could not be saved, which would affect each of them in different ways.
"There's been a few deaths here and every death hurts.
"Let's remember SJ and the efforts that went into saving her."
A colleague of Bayram's at the University of Auckland told the gathering they had been her "family" here in New Zealand and emergency contact, receiving a late night knock on the door from "men in blue".
Bayram's UK-based father had asked to express his thanks to everyone involved in his daughter's rescue, including the civilian surfers and lifeguards, as well as police and local iwi "for everything that you have done".
"Thank you all for your contributions."
A skydiving plane circles close to Muriwai Beach after a woman collided with another skydiver in mid-air. Photo / Supplied
The Coroner's officer confirmed a post-mortem had been completed and Bayram's body released to her family representative in New Zealand.
It was up to family to decide whether she was buried or cremated in New Zealand or her body repatriated home to the UK.
The British High Commission is supporting Bayram's family. The Civil Aviation Authority is investigating the accident to understand how it happened and what actions could be taken to prevent a similar tragedy.
Friends of Bayram have described her as a passionate and experienced skydiver who had completed more than 200 jumps.
Good friend and fellow skydiver Lisa Chambers said Bayram helped set a New Zealand women's sequential skydiving record in June last year.
Local surfers Dylan Wallis, left, and Steve Morpeth were the first to respond to a fatal skydiving accident over Muriwai on Thursday night. Photo / Michael Craig
She had been preparing to take part in another New Zealand women's skydiving record attempt next month - a 17-strong formation jump.
Bayram moved to New Zealand from the UK some years ago and had been ticking off items on an adventure "bucket list", which is how she got into skydiving, Chambers told the Herald.
"She was very quirky - piercings, tattoos and coloured hair. Always a huge smile. She had this great dry sense of humour. She was incredibly funny. She really loved skydiving and was a brilliant person inside and out."
Bayram's death had rocked the close-knit skydiving community, many of whom witnessed the event because they were either on the jump or on the beach in the drop zone.
Chambers described the tragedy as "absolutely devastating".
