The red ute seal lifelong friendship

They have just bought a house and settled in. It’s their first child and a surprise – boy or girl, it doesn’t matter, Bradford said.

‘‘People were walking away from [the mosque] and people were walking towards it and noone had any idea ... It was pretty unreal. There wasn’t really too much going through my head – my wife, my baby, I don’t know. Just to try to do something.’’

He can’t remember when the gunshots stopped. He never saw the gunman but could have driven right past him.

When he arrived, there were others helping – a woman with an injured man, a guy whose black Commodore had been shot up and who was administering first aid and calm.

Bradford could see ambulances down the road, outside the cordon. They weren’t allowed in because the area still hadn’t been declared secure.

‘‘So I ran down to get my truck. That’s when I reversed it up to where you were,’’ he explained to Ditta, whose wife and two daughters sat on the lounge floor to listen.

‘‘When I saw you, you were literally soaked in blood. I’ve never seen so much blood before. I remember looking at you and watching you walk. You weren’t even really limping. I couldn’t believe how strong you were.’’

With his three casualties loaded up, Bradford just drove. There may have been traffic infringements. The hospital was chaos. He leant on his horn to try to get through. After dropping them off, he headed back to the cordon, helping a taxi driver look for his brother, and picking up a girl looking for her dad.

When Bradford hadn’t called back for 20 minutes, Nicole sent him an anxious question mark. He called after dropping off his precious cargo – ‘‘It was pretty full on – a bit scary,’’ Nicole said.

When he finally got home, the emotion hit. ‘‘I burst into tears and didn’t let you go really, did I? It was pretty horrible.’’

The hospital visit helped both Ditta and Bradford. ‘‘I was glad to see you,’’ Ditta said warmly.

‘‘I was glad to see you mate,’’ Bradford responded.

Ditta hailed Bradford as ‘‘an absolute hero’’. Bradford rejected the title. ‘‘I think you guys are the real heroes – what you have been through,’’ he told Ditta. ‘‘You guys are just showing the love . . . I’m just blown away by some of the stories that have come out of what people have done. What I did – I was just there. I didn’t really do anything, except drive you to the hospital.

‘‘Other people – that guy putting his own body in front of the gunman like that.‘‘ too, being held in Istanbul.

It was an opportunity for Peters to be very clear about New Zealand’s record, Ardern said.

‘‘We have to make sure what is portrayed is an accurate reflection of New Zealand ... of our Muslim community and that is his intent.’’

Peters would demonstrate in a very ‘‘forthright way’’ the fact the Muslim community was supported in New Zealand, and the response to what happened.

A Turkish delegation had brought a message of solidarity to New Zealand after the attacks.

For decades Kiwis had made the pilgrimage to Gallipoli to acknowledge they wanted to be a world free of war, hatred and violence, she said.

Ardern was asked if she was offended by Turkey using Christchurch as a political platform and if it would strain relations.

‘‘I do not accept we will see the long-term change in our relationship – it is so deeply entrenched. They cared for our fallen. Hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders have made pilgrimages to that place as a acknowledgment of what ties and binds our countries.

‘‘So I reject the idea we are losing that relationship ... my deputy prime minister is travelling there, where this conversation will happen face to face.’’

‘‘We have to make sure what is portrayed is an accurate reflection of New Zealand . . .’’ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern