Off to Oroua Downs and Sad News

Here we go again, away to take part in another Caravan Club weekend rally.  Not too far away, just 32 kms up SH1 to Oroua Downs School.  Schools do not allow entry to their grounds till after the pupils have all departed, so we stopped for an hour at Foxton  and met up with fellow members filling in time too.

It was while we were here that we became aware of the terrible events unfolding in Christchurch.  Shooters had been on a rampage in two mosques in Christchurch, schools and businesses were in lockdown, and by the early evening 49 people were confirmed dead.  48 people with gunshot wounds had been treated at Christchurch Hospital, with others going to other health facilities around the city.  Patients ranged from young children to adults, with minor to critical injuries.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called the shootings a terrorist attack.  "It is clear that this is one of New Zealand's darkest days," she said. "This is an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence."  What a sad way to start the weekend.

Oroua Downs in a small farming community just north of Foxton.  The name means:  Ō: place of; roua: dredging for shellfish.

Seems that this will be a small attendance this weekend, with several of our members away on various holiday trips.  Small numbers or not, we are sure to have fun.  Rally Family Geoff and Eileen have some plans in place for us.