PM pays tribute
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced another $100,000 for the Tasman District Council Mayoral Disaster Relief Fund to help people affected by a huge forest fire burning near Nelson.
During her second visit to district since the blaze began in Pigeon Valley on February 5, Ardern yesterday said the $100,000 was on top of what had already been given.
A total of $70,000 in Government funding was earlier pledged to the mayoral relief fund.
‘‘It’s becoming clear that damage has been done in the course of trying to push back against the fire, damage to farmland and properties,’’ Ardern said. ‘‘That extra funding will make sure we plug those gaps, that we can get that remedial work done as soon as possible.’’
The Government boost for the mayoral fund comes after the region’s Myanmar community this week donated $4900 and the team at Neudorf Vineyards collected more than $7000 at a concert on Tuesday evening that featured Marlon Williams. As of yesterday afternoon, the fund balance stood at $128,000, which did not include the $170,000 in Gov- ernment funding nor the $7182 from Neudorf Vineyards.
Council communications officer Beth Catley said several large individual donations of up to $10,000 were included in the $128,000 total of non-Government funding including $10,000 each from Ryman Healthcare and Network Tasman along with $5000 from Te A¯ tiawa Trust.
Neudorf marketing director Rosie Finn said she was ‘‘blown away’’ by the generosity of concert goers who added $6182 to an initial contribution of $1000 from Neudorf Vineyards.
Finn said she became emotional as she walked among the crowd of fewer than 800, collecting such a large total in donations.
‘‘I’m really proud of the community; they’re certainly getting behind it,’’ she said. ‘‘It was an amazing feeling – really, really humbling.’’
Mayor Richard Kempthorne said the donation from the Myanmar community was ‘‘a huge amount of money because they are previously refugees, they arrived in New Zealand with the shirt on their back and for that contribution coming through to help people in our community is absolutely stunning and I thank them for it along with all the other organisations and groups that are contributing to that fund’’.