Support for Erebus memorial

A former army aircraft loader vividly remembers the work he did in the Erebus disaster.

‘‘I’ll remember Erebus until the day I die,’’ Kevin Hibbs, of Southland, said yesterday.

The Ministry for Culture and Heritage is leading a project for a national memorial to commemorate those who died and the efforts of the many people who took part in Operation Overdue.

The Air NZ Flight TE901 crashed into Mt Erebus in Antarctica, killing all 257 passengers and crew and sparking one of the landmark operations for police.

Hibbs remembers watching flight TE901 flying over his Antarctica base.

He recalls being yelled at to get his survival gear and he remembers loading the bodies of fellow New Zealanders into an RNZAF plane to return them to their families.

Hibbs has an Erebus medal that recognises his service.

He had the task of thawing the dead bodies and loading them into the plane.

It was not an easy job but there was some solace in the fact people were being returned to their families.

He supports the efforts of the ministry for a national memorial.

Operation Overdue involved 11 members of police staff who flew to Antarctica for body retrieval, and 157 others worked in disaster victim identification, family liaison and other roles.

New Zealand Police is helping MCH compile a database of the contact details of all those who would like to be kept informed about the project.

Police museum director Rowan Carroll is co-ordinating the search for the estimated 350 people who worked in relation to the disaster.

In many cases their details are known, but a number have died and others are dispersed nationally and internationally.

They included police, mountaineers, surveyors and face rescue teams, New Zealand and US Defence personnel, Auckland Hospital and Auckland University staff, dentists, jewellers, funeral directors and embalmers, staff from Air New Zealand and McDonnell Douglas, media agencies and others.

Hibbs says people today need to be aware of Erebus, and not just that the plane crashed but the aftermath of the investigation.

‘‘People need to know that people make mistakes.

‘‘There are still repercussions from Erebus today.’’

‘‘I’ll remember Erebus until the day I die.’’

Kevin Hibbs