NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Rotorua: Sakura Hall named as 2-year-old girl who died in Dansey Rd crash

Megan Wilson
By Megan Wilson
Multimedia Journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
23 May, 2025 05:00 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

A serious crash has happened on Dansey Rd near Rotorua.
  • The person who died in a crash near Rotorua on Thursday has been named by her family as 2-year-old Sakura Hall.
  • Police were called to a crash involving a car and a rubbish truck on Dansey Rd shortly before 8am, which left one person dead and two injured.
  • Sakura has been remembered as a child with a gentle heart and bright future, which was “cut short in an instant”.

Two-year-old Sakura Hall was only five weeks from her third birthday when she died in a crash near Rotorua “in circumstances too heartbreaking to comprehend”.

A statement from Sakura’s uncle, Jesse Tamm, on behalf of Sakura’s maternal side of the family, said it was with broken hearts that they shared the “devastating news” of Sakura’s sudden death in a car accident in Mamaku on Thursday morning.

“Sakura was taken from us far too soon, in circumstances too heartbreaking to comprehend.

“At only five weeks away from her third birthday, Sakura’s vibrant spirit, gentle heart, and bright future were cut short in an instant, leaving our family in deep shock and sorrow.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

“This loss is not only profoundly painful - it is unimaginable.

“The suddenness of this tragedy has shaken us to our core.”

Tamm said the family was still trying to come to terms with the reality that “our beloved Sakura will no longer be with us”.

She was a cherished daughter, granddaughter, niece, cousin and friend, and her absence would be felt forever, he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Two-year-old Sakura Hall has been named by her family as the victim of a fatal car crash near Rotorua on Thursday.
Two-year-old Sakura Hall has been named by her family as the victim of a fatal car crash near Rotorua on Thursday.

“We are deeply grateful for the incredible outpouring of support we have received. The kind words, messages, flowers and prayers have brought warmth and comfort to our grieving hearts during this darkest time.”

Tamm said the family asked for privacy as they gathered to mourn, supported one another, and made arrangements to honour Sakura’s memory with the love and dignity she deserved.

Details of her farewell would be shared in the coming days.

“Thank you for standing with us in our sorrow and holding our family in your hearts.”

Police at the SH5/Dansey Rd intersection on Thursday morning.  Photo / Ben Fraser
Police at the SH5/Dansey Rd intersection on Thursday morning. Photo / Ben Fraser

Police said on Friday that inquiries into the crash were continuing.

Officers were called to the two-vehicle crash on Dansey Rd shortly before 8am on Thursday. Two other people were injured, one of them seriously.

Rotorua Lakes Council infrastructure and assets general manager Stavros Michael said on Thursday that a truck from its contractor, Smart Environmental, was involved in the crash.

“This is obviously a very distressing matter for everyone involved and our thoughts are with those involved and their families at this time.”

Smart Environmental was providing support to the driver, and the council had also offered its support if needed.

Mayor Tania Tapsell said on Thursday: “Our hearts are absolutely broken to hear that there has been a fatality in our community. We send our love to all those involved.”

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Hato Hone St John was notified of the crash at 7.58am.

It responded with one ambulance and one rapid response vehicle and took one patient in a serious condition to Rotorua Hospital.

One patient in a moderate condition was assessed and treated at the scene.

Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. She has been a journalist since 2021.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New ZealandUpdated

Regional ratepayers to fund $3.58m loan for Tarawera Sewerage Scheme

27 May 06:40 PM
Opinion

Not a lot for farmers in Budget 2025 - Dr Jacqueline Rowarth

27 May 06:00 PM
New Zealand

Teen launches nationwide campaign to combat period poverty

27 May 06:00 PM

Gold demand soars amid global turmoil

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Regional ratepayers to fund $3.58m loan for Tarawera Sewerage Scheme

Regional ratepayers to fund $3.58m loan for Tarawera Sewerage Scheme

27 May 06:40 PM

Debate on the final split of the controversial scheme's $32.3m cost begins today.

Not a lot for farmers in Budget 2025 - Dr Jacqueline Rowarth

Not a lot for farmers in Budget 2025 - Dr Jacqueline Rowarth

27 May 06:00 PM
Teen launches nationwide campaign to combat period poverty

Teen launches nationwide campaign to combat period poverty

27 May 06:00 PM
'Game-changer' domestic jet flights return to Hamilton after 25 years

'Game-changer' domestic jet flights return to Hamilton after 25 years

27 May 06:00 PM
Explore the hidden gems of NSW
sponsored

Explore the hidden gems of NSW

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP