The Hub will feature 137 car parks, two bus stops and other facilities It is expected to open by mid-2022Construction of a new park-and-ride facility in Warkworth is leaping ahead with the installation of a long line of piles for the interior walkway and a clear outline of the area visible by emerging kerb and channel works.The Warkworth Community Transport Hub at 80 Great North Road is being delivered by Auckland Transport on behalf of the Rodney Local Board and is funded by the Rodney Transport Targeted Rate.It will feature 137 car parks, a bus layover, two bus stops, footpaths, a toilet block, bike parking, lighting and CCTV.A signal-controlled crossing and the northbound bus stop on Great North Road have been completed, and construction of the southbound bus stop is now underway.The Rodney Transport Targeted Rate was introduced by Auckland Council in 2018 after extensive community consultation. The $150 per annum rateable property charge is projected to raise $46 million over 10 years to pay for new bus services and bus stops, park-and-ride facilities, and footpaths.Rodney Local Board Deputy Chair Beth Houlbrooke says it’s great to see the transport hub taking shape.“I’m looking forward to seeing the community utilise the area when using public transport services, in turn freeing up parks in Warkworth village for shoppers and business visitors,” she said.“Plus, there’ll be extra parking for locals attending events at the Warkworth Showgrounds, accessed via a timber bridge and dedicated walkway.“Construction is progressing nicely, and the Rodney Local Board expects to open the new facility for locals mid-2022.”

Your Weekend Weather:MetService is forecasting a change in the weather this weekend as a frontal system pushes across the country...Saturday: Cloud increasing, a few showers developing in the morning. Southwesterlies. High of 19, low of 13.Sunday: Cloudy periods, scattered rain for a time. Westerlies. High of 21 and low of 15.

Incase you missed the memo Bonus Bonds is no longer. Since August 2020, ANZ bank stopped accepting new investment in the bond scheme.Numerous messages and advertisements have been sent out to bond holders letting them know they need to cash in their bonds; by contacting ANZ Bonus Bonds and giving them your current bank account details. Apparently, the message hasn’t gotten through to everyone as over $800 million still needs to find its home!!!So, if you haven’t already redeemed your Bonus Bonds you may want to! Who knows you may have a pot of money sitting there that you have forgotten about? Or perhaps an account was set up by a relative when you were born, that you don’t know exists. Start the conversation with your family now!Get in touch with ANZ Bonus Bonds 0800 266 374https://bonusbonds.co.nz/index.html

One Mahurangi Business Association last night hosted a thank-you dinner acknowledging the hard work and dedication from our local EMERGENCY services over what was an extremely busy summer period (and in fact the year!).The thank-you encompassed staff and volunteers from Fire departments in Warkworth, Snell’s beach, Matakana, and Leigh; as well as local Police; St John’s; Coastguard; and Surf Lifesaving.The evening included food and beverages, 100% provided by our local businesses.As well as music and entertainment which included Dianne Morgan and the Jade River Ukes, and Lou Lou.Community volunteers prepared, served, and cleaned up, as a way to say thank you.The night was a great success; it was well attended; dancing was had, and merriment was achieved! It was a wonderful community event orchestrated by Murray Chapman of One Mahurangi Business Association and it's many sponsors. Local people coming together, chipping in to acknowledge all the hard work our emergency services do! Hopefully it will become an annual event!Sponsors of the event included:Carlton Party HireSawmillMahurangi River WineryBayleysComposite JoineryAldo’s8 WiredBarfoot & ThompsonMahurangi MattersWarkworth Town HallITM WarkworthAqua WorksHeron’s FlightDixon StainlessGaby’sChocolate BrownPuhoi ValleyStihl Shop WarkworthSource KitchenPlume CollectionECM SignsCountdown WarkworthNew World WarkworthBrick BayStirling SportsSummersetWarehouse StationaryViet Q FoodsLee FishRSA WarkworthMonaghansNgati Manuhiri Settlement TrustSavanInsite SecurityGolden Boat Fast FoodsAsahi Japanese CuisinePacific LinenCharlies GelatoBam BooBridgehouse Lodge WarkworthBam’s BakerySalt Water Work ShopWarkworth HotelCafé QJade River Oyster FarmsThe Photo StoreFresh Café One Mahurangi Business Association invited the community to share their messages of gratitude for our emergency services. Here are just a few thank you notes from the community. The rest can be read here https://onemahurangi.co.nz/emergency-services-dinner/ “We have quite a number of current & past employees who are members of the local volunteer Fire Service. As a Company we are very proud of their tireless volunteer work in our community and aware of the sacrifices they make in volunteering their time and energy to help others. We are aware of how much this can impact on their personal and work lives and wish to pass on our gratitude and congratulations for their selfless volunteer work.”Warwick Rhodes Contractors t/a Rhodes for Roads “Where would we be without you?”Rachel & Gareth from The Tahi Bar “Over the last few years I have been helped by, worked with, made friends with a lot of the wonderful people in our local emergency services. In every interaction they have been, without question, kind, caring, compassionate and above all passionate about what they do. We are very blessed to have them in our community.”Brent Harbour“As you can well imagine, a retirement village has more than its fair share of emergency callouts. We have regular visits from St John ambulance, often multiple times a day. The care and empathy shown to our residents by the paramedics is always exceptional. The communication by the call centre staff is amazing and they manage to keep residents (and staff) calm while waiting for the ambulance to turn up to look after them. Just knowing that the emergency services are available and close by is comforting for all our residents so from us all at Summerset Falls – a huge thank you for everything you do for us.”Summerset Falls Retirement Village 

Northshore commuters now have access to congestion free travel to and from the city, as far north as Albany, thanks to the completion of the latest Northern Busway extension which was opened today by the Minister of Transport, Michael Wood.The four year project has delivered an additional five kilometres of separated, two-way lanes for buses, adjacent to the Northern Motorway (SH1) and a $23 million upgrade of Constellation Station.“The Government is committed to delivering public transport that is convenient, reliable and cost-effective. Thanks to the extension, commuters will now experience quicker, improved bus journeys during peak travel times,” said Michael Wood.“The efficient and effective movement of people and goods is crucial to our economic recovery. That’s why we are investing a record $24.3 billion into transport services and infrastructure over the next three years – a 44 per cent increase compared to the last three years and 75 per cent more than the previous government.“The success of the Northern Busway, which clocked eight million trips in its first 10 years, is proof that when we build a rapid public transport system that meets the needs of the community, there will always be the demand to use it.“Climate change is the most significant factor influencing the land transport system over the next decade. If we want to tackle climate change, we need to move people out of their cars and into other modes like public transport and walking and cycling. The actions and decisions that we make now for the transport system will help shape the future.“The northern busway extension is an important part of our broader plan to future proof Auckland with a high quality, linked up mass transit system, which includes a range of projects such as the Eastern busway, Auckland Light Rail, and the Alternative Waitemata Harbour crossing,” said Michael Wood.The extension and upgrades are part of the wider of Northern Corridor Improvements project. The project also includes completion of the Western Ring Route which will support people and goods to easily travel around the region using direct SH1 and SH18 connections. More than 7km of walking and cycling paths with local road and park connections are included. This work is planned to be completed in 2023.

A dead possum has been found on Aotea / Great Barrier Island - home to many protected species including pāteke and tāiko.It is the first time the pest has been found on the possum-free island since 2016.Department of Conservation operations manager Kirsty Prior said it was found on the road at Whangaparapara last month by a local.The discovery would be taken very seriously, she said."Possums have never been established on Aotea / Great Barrier Island and as a significant ecological pest in New Zealand, it is important that we ensure they are not able to set up home," DOC Operations Manager Kirsty Prior said."The necropsy, completed by Massey University, indicated the possum had died from gunshot wounds and we think it is unlikely that a local resident would shoot a possum and leave it unreported on the road. These kinds of incidences are usually associated with deliberate mischief or washing up from a distant site."There is no information to suggest there are other possum on the island and no further possum signs such as droppings, browse or scratch marks have been found, Prior said."Great Barrier Island is home to many protected species such as tāiko/black petrel, brown teal/pāteke, and other endemic species such as kakariki/red crowned parakeet and miromiro/tomtit."Any new establishment of a pest or predator would have a significant impact on the wildlife on the island, and mana whenua, the local community, DOC and Auckland Council are committed to ensuring we prevent this."Anyone who sees an unwanted pest on Aotea is encouraged to call 0800 DOC HOT.

A marker that could help identify babies at a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) has been discovered by Sydney researchers.The study conducted by The Children's Hospital Westmead confirmed what had long been suspected - that SIDS victims were unable to wake themselves up - but it went one step further by providing the why.The enzyme butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) plays a major role in the "brain's arousal pathway" and was found at "significantly lower" levels in babies who die of SIDS."Babies have a very powerful mechanism to let us know when they are not happy," lead researcher and Honorary Research Fellow Dr Carmel Harrington said."Usually, if a baby is confronted with a life-threatening situation, such as difficulty breathing during sleep because they're on their tummies, they will arouse and cry out."What this research shows is that some babies don't have this same robust arousal response."Now that we know that BChE is involved, we can begin to change the outcome for these babies and make SIDS a thing of the past."Public health campaigns focusing on safe sleeping, overheating and maternal smoking during a baby's first three months have reduced the incidence of SIDS.However, the children's hospital says death rates remain high."There is this perception that SIDS isn't a problem anymore or that the problem can be solved if all babies had the correct sleep conditions, but two children still die from SIDS in Australia every week," said Professor Karen Waters, the head of the children's hospital SIDS and Sleep Apnoea Research Group.It is hoped the finding could lead to the development of a screening test in a few years' time.Hailed as a "game-changer" to "every parent's worst nightmare", the discovery of BChE also provides answers to parents, like Dr Harrington, whose healthy babies died "on their watch"."These families can now live with the knowledge that this was not their fault," she said."My son, Damien, died suddenly and unexpectedly one night. It took me about two years before I could really take a breath again, and at that point, I thought I actually want to find out why he died."Nobody could tell me. They just said it's a tragedy. But it was a tragedy that didn't sit well with my scientific brain."That was 29 years ago.Since then, Dr Harrington has dedicated her life to finding answers and funding, which has also involved setting up the crowdfunding [campaign Damien's Legacy in honour of her "beautiful little boy".The study, published in The Lancet, analysed dried blood spots taken as part of the Newborn Screening Program.The blood was analysed after deaths from SIDS and other causes, and each one was compared to 10 surviving infants.Attention will now focus on using the findings to develop targeted interventions."This is the gift that I feel I got for Mother's Day because the timing of this is really peculiar to me, that it's coming on Mother's Day," Dr Harrington said."This gives us a focus for our future research. So there's quite a lot to be done. We need to understand the system better … We know what we have to do. It's just actually getting the funding for it."

Here's our weather forecast for this week:Today and Tuesday look a bit iffy, but pretty good the rest of the weekMonday: Often cloudy. Isolated showers developing this morning, becoming widespread later this afternoon, some possibly heavy. Northwest breezes.Tuesday: A few showers, mainly morning and evening. Southwesterlies change southeast in the evening.Wednesday: Fine with southeasterlies.Thursday: Fine with southerlies.Friday: Fine with southerlies.

The Auckland Council has released their decision to refuse the proposal to extract sand from the coastal marine area off-shore at Pakiri. This is a massive win for the many groups that oppose sand mining in Pakiri and Mangawhai beaches. Some of the supporting organisations included Save our Sand Mangawhai Pakiri (SOS), Kaipara District Council, Greenpeace, the Endangered Species Organisation, Fairy Tern Trust, Surf Riders Association and Te Whānau o Pakiri.A statement released from Save our Sand Mangawhai Pakiri facebook page says “This two year campaign has taken a huge amount of good work done by a huge amount of good people. From the thousands who put in submissions and signed petitions, to financial contributions, coastal process specialists, to vessel spotters, Fairy Tern costume wearers, media pluggers, expert lawyers, local iwi, enthusiastic locals and receptive organisations we want to say thank-you.We also want to take the time to thank the commissioners for their work and for making the right decision and upholding the precautionary approach and cultural heritage of the area.Future battles still await, two more consent applications for the Near Shore and Mid Shore also need to be stopped, these are even more environmentally contentious and directly damaging to the beach. Saying that, momentum is a great thing, and a precedent has now been set.” For an in-depth look at sand mining:https://friendsofpakiribeach.org.nz/ https://www.endangeredspecies.org.nz/post/off-shore-sand-mining-application-at-pakiri-declined  

Quick thinking by Police’s Eagle crew this afternoon resulted in the arrest of seven youths who were attempting to steal vehicles from members of the public on State Highway 1 in Wellsford after fleeing from Police. The incident unfolded after members of the public observed a suspicious vehicle in Kaiwaka township shortly before 1pm today.The car didn’t have any registration plates and was being driven at speeds well in excess of the speed limit.Eagle staff attended and located the vehicle in the Dome Forest, and monitored the car as it travelled south, providing vital updates to ground staff.The car subsequently changed direction and headed northbound again, and road spikes were deployed near the northern end of Dome Forest. The car continued on for a short distance, before not being able to travel any further and coming to a stop on State Highway 1 in Wellsford, near Wayby Valley Road. Seven youths ran from the stolen car and approached a queue of stationary vehicles that had been blocked by the youths' car parked across the road. The youths unsuccessfully attempted to gain access to some of these vehicles, in an attempt to make their escape in another vehicle.With ground staff still some distance away, Eagle staff made a decision to land on farmland adjacent to the incident, just off State Highway 1.Two officers from the helicopter ran to the scene and took the seven youths into custody before they could escape again. “I have no doubt that the actions of our Eagle crew prevented further offending being committed by these seven youths, who were intent on securing a second stolen vehicle - and undoubtedly fleeing again," says Inspector Jason Homan. "We are very proud to have such high performing staff, who are so committed to keeping our communities safe. The team did a really great job today.”

Another major highway project is suffering significant delays, with the Pūhoi-to-Warkworth Ara Tūhono motorway not opening until next year.The Pūhoi-to-Warkworth Ara Tūhono motorway - north of Auckland - had already been pushed back from late last year to a new opening date this month.But the delay until 2023 was confirmed by Waka Kotahi.It did not give a specific date for when it aimed to open the 18.5km route, which picks up where the northern motorway out of Auckland ends.A Waka Kotahi statement said it "cannot confirm an exact opening date" but its partners had "advised that the road will be completed next year which means the safer, more reliable and resilient route will now open in 2023".Like the long-delayed and over-budget Transmission Gully motorway, Pūhoi is being built by a public private partnership (PPP).It was budgeted to cost almost $900 million. NZTA has not said if costs will over-run, or by how much.The motorway is Spanish giant Acciona's first project in New Zealand.The project's website said "work is progressing well", then added: "Because this is a PPP, road opening is determined by contractual agreements and obligations. The impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic response on these contractual matters, and in turn the programme of works, is currently being worked through with our partners".The hold-up could be have a domino-delay effect on the next stage, an extension of the highway from Warkworth to Wellsford.Traffic had been expected to start using one of the two big viaducts (at Ōkahu inlet) on 23 May, before coming off on the new Pūhoi offramp back on to the existing SH1, project updates said, and north and southbound traffic was to move onto the new motorway on 13 June.Safety concerns about the design and durability of the viaducts were raised by an engineering firm in 2020. NZTA said these were fully addressed.The NX2 private-sector consortium is responsible for designing, building, maintaining and operating the motorway for up to 25 years.

An enzyme variant created by engineers and scientists at The University of Texas at Austin can break down environment-throttling plastics that typically take centuries to degrade in just a matter of hours to days.This discovery, published in Nature, could help solve one of the world’s most pressing environmental problems: what to do with the billions of tons of plastic waste piling up in landfills and polluting our natural lands and water.The enzyme has the potential to supercharge recycling on a large scale that would allow major industries to reduce their environmental impact by recovering and reusing plastics at the molecular level."The possibilities are endless across industries to leverage this leading-edge recycling process," said Hal Alper, professor in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at UT Austin."Beyond the obvious waste management industry, this also provides corporations from every sector the opportunity to take a lead in recycling their products. Through these more sustainable enzyme approaches, we can begin to envision a true circular plastics economy."

Weekend Weather ForecastSaturday - fine with light winds. High of 21 and low of 13 degrees.Sunday - Fine with light winds. High of 21 and low of 13 degrees.Set to be a lovely weekend. A perfect chance to enjoy our many markets!

Auckland Transport (AT) will be undertaking road resurfacing along Glenmore Drive, Warkworth.Work is scheduled to take place over two nights (from 8pm – 5am) on Tuesday 10 May and Wednesday 11 May 2022. In the event weather disrupts our schedule work will be move to the next available shift. We will not work Friday or Saturday nights or public holidays.Road closure will be in place on Glenmore Drive.Between 7pm and 5am, parking restrictions will be enforced near the work site to allow for the traffic management set up. Outside of these hours, parking will be available as normal.Driveway access will be maintained, traffic controllers will guide vehicles across the work site as required.During work hours large machinery will be operating in the area, please expect an increase in noise, dust and/or vibration. Every effort will be taken to keep construction impacts to a minimum.For more information and a MAPhttps://mcusercontent.com/36ae5475dc1256b998966f800/files/879fa7eb-20e1-31db-d4b9-1d3f93a49f58/Morrison_Dr_Warkworth.pdf Auckland Transport (AT) will also be undertaking road resurfacing along Morrison Drive, Warkworth.Work is scheduled to take place over three nights (8pm – 5am) on Thursday 12 May, Sunday 15 May and Monday 16 May 2022.There will be three different stages that will include – 1) Road closure on Morrison Drive 2) Stop/Go operation on Woodcocks Road 3) No on-street parking.Between 7pm and 5am, parking restrictions will be enforced near the work site to allow for the traffic management set up. Outside of these hours, parking will be available as normal.Driveway access will be maintained, traffic controllers will guide vehicles across the work site as required.During work hours large machinery will be operating in the area, please expect an increase in noise, dust and/or vibration. Every effort will be taken to keep construction impacts to a minimum.For more information and a MAPhttps://mcusercontent.com/36ae5475dc1256b998966f800/files/879fa7eb-20e1-31db-d4b9-1d3f93a49f58/Morrison_Dr_Warkworth.pdf

A happy Mother’s Day to all our mums, mums to be, grandmas, or guardians for this Sunday! We want to spoil a family, so we are giving away a dinner voucher worth $200 for a family dinner at either The Stables, Smith’s Bar, Warkworth Hotel or Bam Boo. If you WIN then you choose!To enter the draw head over to our WIN STUFF! button on the main page in the App and enter your details. Good luck!

Attribute to Detective Senior Sergeant Chris Allan, Auckland City District Financial Crime Unit:Millions of dollars a year are being swiped by scammers taking advantage of those looking for love online.NZ Police are receiving a consistent stream of reports from people who have been scammed by a ‘person’ they have met online via either a dating website or a dating app.Those who carry out romance scams are experts at what they do and will seem genuine, caring, and believable. Unfortunately, they are present on most dating platforms.We’re aware of a repeat pattern of events across all reports, where the scammer typically moves the conversation from a reputable dating site to WhatsApp and quickly professes their love and admiration for the victim, before revealing they are a wealthy businessman or military staff who are based overseas. Once trust has been gained they request financial assistance from the target.The method of payment request depends on the proficiency of the victim.If the victim is able to open a cryptocurrency account, then buying and sending cryptocurrency preferred method of transmission.However, sending cash or making a bank transfer offshore via a money remitter, transferring funds to a bank account of someone else that is being scammed, or handing cash to a money laundering cryptocurrency trader, are other potential ways a scammer will ask the victim to provide them with funds.Our investigations indicate that those who perpetrate these romance scams are predominantly based offshore.They are typically organised criminal networks who are scamming multiple victims at once.To keep their story on-track when engaging with multiple people, they use the same profile. Police often see the same photo used over and over again, with a different generic name, pedalling a similar story about their fraudulent background.We have repeatedly seen the same stolen image used on doctored New Zealand Drivers Licences, such as the one attached.We are advising everyone to be wary of any online approaches where something might seem amiss.Some red flags to be aware of:- People who always have excuses about why they can’t meet you in person or even video call.- Those who are often in a hard to reach place (e.g. working on oil rigs, in the military, working overseas).- People who seem to always have a sob story (e.g. a child or family member is sick), and there's always a degree of urgency.We advise those looking for love online to be wary of who you are speaking to:- Be careful what you post and make public on the internet. Scammers can use details shared on social media and dating sites to better understand and target you.- Research the person’s photo and profile using online searches to see if the image, name, or details have been used elsewhere.- Beware if the individual seems too perfect or quickly asks you to leave a dating service or social media site to communicate directly.- Note if the individual attempts to isolate you from friends and family or requests inappropriate photos or financial information that could later be used to extort you.If you believe you are the victim of a scam you can contact Police and report the matter via 105.Visit consumerprotection.govt.nz/general-help/scamwatch/(link is external) for more information on how you can prevent yourself, family and friends from being scammed.

The iconic Fiordland track was the first of the Great Walks to open for bookings with the rest opening over the next few days.The Great Walks season runs between late October and the end of April.DOC bookings service manager Ross Shearer said it had predicted a high level of demand and initial observations showed it."The track was close to fully booked, aside from some ongoing cancellations and bookings changes, well within the first 30 minutes of opening."DOC's booking service coped well with the high volume of bookings over a short period of time."Nearly two hours after opening, there were only sporadic bookings left with no huts dates recording more than eight available spaces on any given day.Last year, it took just 15 minutes for accommodation on the Milford Track to fill up for the entire season."We'll have a full breakdown of how Milford bookings went once the data has been compiled - around midday tomorrow," Shearer said.Last year, DOC created a myth-busting blog post about how the Great Walks bookings work.

Te Tohu o Matariki - the new logo for Matariki - has been unveiled as the historic first matauranga Māori public holiday is soon to be observed.Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, several other ministers and the chair of the Matariki advisory board, Professor Rangi Matamua, gathered at the Carter Observatory in Wellington today to learn about the tohu and its relevance.The tohu illustrates each star in the cluster as a tukutuku design and each has a different colour associated with it and is depicted by nine woven stitches to symbolise Māori culture intertwining with the rest of the country.One of the creators of the new logo, Tyrone Ohia, said the design represents Aotearoa uniting as one."They cross in and out of each other and hold each other together.... we're hoping it's a metaphor for us as a nation coming together under this Māori kaupapa to celebrate in a distinctively Aotearoa way that's inclusive of all of us".The government first announced in 2020 it would make Matariki a public holiday if it was re-elected later that year.Jacinda Ardern speaks at the logo launch at the Carter Observatory in Wellington. Photo: RNZ / Ashleigh McCaulRecently law to set up Matariki as a public holiday passed in Parliament, making it the 12th public holiday in Aotearoa.Speaking at the gifting, Ardern said introducing Matariki as a public holiday will help shape Aotearoa's future identity."In the many many things that we will do as a government this, alongside our children learning New Zealand's history in schools, I think will lay a foundation for New Zealand's future that means that we better recognise and understand who we are; what makes us unique and we celebrate that together."She expected the holiday to change over time with more people learning about what Matariki meant to the country.Professor Matamua spoke about the design, saying there was an undeniable connection between the tukutuku panels inside the wharenui and the stars at night."This logo represents something that can embed and reaffirm our national identity, and those really crucial elements that make us who we are and where we are."Professor Matamua expected there to be numerous events to celebrate the Māori New Year across the motu including from whānau waking up early to stargaze, to arts events and concerts.Matariki will be celebrated for the first time as a public holiday on 24 June.Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Kiritapu Allan acknowledged the tamariki of Te Kōhanga Reo o Ngā Mokopuna and sang a waiata about Matariki with them.Allan has a daughter named after one of the stars of Matariki, Hiwa-i-te-rangi.She said her daughter was growing up in a world where Matariki had been normalised."She's growing up in a world where mātauranga is something that's inherently built into our culture and characteristics and fibres. So she won't know any different."It's estimated Matariki will benefit domestic tourism industry between $110 million to $160m.

You would have passed the Matakana War Memorial statue of King George V numerous times, who stands at the the entrance to our beautiful Matakana Village.The Matakana War Memorial is a dedication to the 13 men from our village, who lost their lives in the First World War. In 2012 another plaque was added, listing six local men who died in World War Two. This statue, our symbol of remembrance has been continually vandalised since the 1980’s and sadly has met the hands of vandals once again, as last Saturday night the Matakana War Memorial was desecrated again with another beheading of the George V statue.Previously in the years 1999, 2006 and 2011 the statues head was severed and on 2 occasions not recovered.The cost in 2012 to sculpt and attach a new head for the statue was roughly $20,000+. Fortunately after some negotiations by Adrienne Miller the Auckland Council have again agreed to fix and pay for the repairs.You may now notice that the War Memorial New Zealand flag is now hanging upside down on the monument, a navy signal that represents one being in trouble and needing help."This will be a reminder to all that past - that the Matakana War Memorial is in trouble and needs your help. I will return the flag upright when the head has been reinstalled” said Adrienne Miller.We are thankful for the dedication to our War Memorial by passionate locals, as we want to remember those who lost their lives in conflict.