Morrinsville woman Lisa Maclennan has remains formally identified

Morrinsville woman Lisa Maclennan, 50, has had her remains formally identified in an identification hearing.

The remains of Morrinsville woman Lisa Anne Maclennan have been formally identified in an identification hearing.

The 50-year-old, who was the literacy centre co-ordinator at Morrinsville Intermediate, was caught in the large and significant landslide at Mt Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park, which happened just over a week ago.

In the hearing in the Tauranga District Court, Coroner Heather McKenzie said she was satisfied that human remains recovered belonged to Maclennan.

Forensic odonotology, which focused on dental records compared with post-mortem examination, was the primary form of identification, as was DNA profiling evidence obtained from Maclennan’s children.

Secondary identifiers included her height, hair colour, and a tattoo, described by family members.

Coroner Heather McKenzie said she was satisfied there was “sufficient and reliable” evidence to establish the remains belonged to Maclennan.

Coroner McKenzie expressed condolences to Maclennan’s family, emphasising that “Lisa” was at the centre of the proceedings, despite the legal formalities and terminology used.

Maclennan has been lauded as a hero for her actions on the morning of the slip.

The Herald revealed she woke many holidaymakers up at 5am to warn them that the bank above the camp was deteriorating.

Maclennan is the third victim to be formally identified in the Coroner’s Court identification hearing process.

Swedish tourist Måns Loke Bernhardsson, who was 20, was identified on Thursday, and Max Furse-Kee was identified on Wednesday, on what would have been his 16th birthday.

The hearings are ongoing and form part of the Disaster Victim Identification process.

At the site of the landslide, which happened around 9.30am on January 22, recovery operations continue.

Six people went missing following the Mauao landslide, Lisa Anne Maclennan, 50; Mans Loke Bernhardsson, 20; Jacqualine Suzanne Wheeler, 71; Susan Doreen Knowles, 71; Sharon Maccanico, 15; and Max Furse-Kee, 15.

Husband’s tribute: “She was loving, humble, loyal and we are going to miss her immensely”

This afternoon Maclennan’s husband, Travis, issued a heartfelt tribute to his late wife.

He said the entire family was “absolutely devastated” by her death.

She was a cherished daughter, mother, aunt, sister, grandmother and wife.

Travis said she was “very spontaneous and adventurous”.

“She was always looking for new things to do and would never shy away from a challenge,” he said.

“Lisa was fully devoted to her job as a learning assistant and loved working with young people that had challenges in their learning.

“She loved nothing more than seeing students succeed and overcome personal obstacles. That is one thing, among many, that we loved about her, and know the whole community did too.”

Travis said his wife always had the best interests of others “at the front of her mind”.

“She would always put others before herself. She was incredibly selfless and would often sacrifice things for other people.

“Lisa went above and beyond for her friends, her family, and the community. She was loving, humble, loyal and we are going to miss her immensely.

“Lisa did not like attention, but she always worked so hard in the background to help others succeed.”

Travis added the family wanted to thank New Zealand Police, Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s Urban Search and Rescue teams, rapid relief, local iwi, and “everyone who has been on site day after day working tirelessly to help bring Lisa and all those unaccounted for, back to their families”.

Hannah Bartlett is a Tauranga-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She previously covered court and local government for the Nelson Mail, and before that was a radio reporter at Newstalk ZB.