River rescue features in start to new school year
Dannevirke High School has started the year with a huge range of activities, beginning with a po whiri on Thursday January 30.
The school said the way that students showed respect during official occasions highlighted how well the students are doing. New staff were welcomed along with all new students.
At that assembly three boys’ exploits at last year’s Year 10 camps were recognised, although only one was at school to receive the accolades. Principal Di Carter relates:
“The three boys — Malcolm Johnson, Ty Madden and Bailey Aupouri — who were on the Te Whaiti-Te Urewera End of Year School Camp November 2019 probably saved a young boy’s life.
“After a long day of hiking our rangatahi were treated to a swim in the afternoon where the Mangamate Stream flows into the Whirinaki River. It is a safe place to swim and on one particular day there was a
large group of whanau from the village of Minginui, celebrating the birthday of one of the children who had turned five.
“Our rangatahi were swimming in the river among the many members of the wha nau enjoying themselves when a young boy was pushed off the rocks by his sister in and around the rocks of the deeper part of the river.
“The adult members of this young boy’s wha nau started rushing to the boy’s aide but our three boys were in the river when they saw what happened. They swam over to the rocks and pulled the young boy, who had gone under by this stage, out of the water spluttering and swam him safely to the shore into the arms of his whanau.
“If our boys had not been there this boy may have well drowned as the adult members of the boy’s wha nau were not in the river at the time.”
Senior students have already been out at the Year 13 Leadership Camp in the Pohangina Valley at Camp Rangi
Woods. The student leaders were named in assembly on Tuesday February 10.