KEY POINTS:
A 17-year-old killed after falling off the back of a ute was last night surrounded by family at a Northland marae.
Marie Mihi Patrica Nelson suffered severe head injuries while riding on a Nissan Navara along Ripiro Beach near Dargaville on Saturday.
She was taken to Dargaville Medical Centre before being flown to Whangarei Hospital, where she died early on Sunday morning.
An aunt told the Herald her niece, whom the family called "Little Marie" because she was her grandmother's namesake, was lying on the Parahaki Marae at Pakotai, 46km west of Whangarei, where she lived.
The aunt said Marie's grandmother had sat beside her casket since it arrived yesterday and would not leave her side until she was buried tomorrow at the family cemetery nearby.
Police want to hear from anyone who saw the ute Miss Nelson was on on Saturday.
