Whakatane police are warning teenagers they are not invincible following two fatalities in a week.
Waimana 13-year-old April Te Uira Taylor Hiko-Reha was killed on Sunday after falling from the rear of a car she and two other youngsters were sitting on after a swim.
A Year
10 student at Whakatane High School, Ms Hiko-Reha was spoken of fondly by both teachers and students yesterday.
School principal Malcolm Harison said staff were compiling memories of the youngster so they could put together an obituary from the school.
Senior Sergeant Bruce Jenkins has described April's death as the preventable, unnecessary tragic loss of a young life.
Her death follows that last Tuesday of 16-year-old Lisa Maata Nicholas, who died after inhaling fly spray from an aerosol can.
The latest fatality also comes just two days after a coroner's inquest into the death of Turae Hare, a 31-year-old local man who lost his life on November 18 when he lost control of his Harley Davidson near Ruatoki. He was not wearing a helmet.
Mr Jenkins said the deaths highlighted the fact nobody was invincible.
"It is impossible to have a policeman on every corner and we are urging members of the community to work together in ensuring the safety of every person, especially children," he said.
"We need everybody to step up and say there are certain things that will not be tolerated in an effort to prevent further tragic loss of life."
April had been travelling on top of a car boot toward the Waimana township with two others aged between 10 and 16 sharing the space. Six others were inside the vehicle, being driven by a 16-year-old. The group were on their way home from a local swimming spot.
April fell off the car and hit her head on the road.
While neither alcohol nor speed did not appear to be contributing factors in Sunday's accident, Mr Jenkins said it was clear what would happen when an unprotected body hit a hard surface.
The driver's culpability was still being investigated.
