Guest safety more important than money

Guest safety more important than money

A Raetihi business made plans to relocate 40 students in response to the threat of armed offenders on the loose in the Ruapehu region.

The students travelling to the 16-bedroom boutique accommodation for their annual Mt Ruapehu ski trip were due to leave Auckland at 10am. Snowy Waters Lodge Owner Sandy Waters contacted the organiser as soon as news of the manhunt and subsequent lockdown broke. She had already booked alternative accommodation 1.5 hours away as the group’s contingency plan if the offenders were not apprehended prior to their expected arrival time.

“The Police are doing their best to find the offenders however the safety of our guests was our priority. I’m a parent myself and I would not sleep well knowing my children were on a school camp where a madman was potentially at large.” Said Ms Waters. “Peace of mind for the students and their families is more important than money any day of the week.”

Raetihi residents have had their fair share of bad luck in recent years but remain resilient and positive about the future. The community was affected by a diesel contamination of the town’s water supply in 2013, and in June this year both the Raetihi – Pipiriki road and the Parapara Highway between Raetihi and Whanganui were closed for a number of weeks due to severe storm damage.

Asked about whether todays events would have an adverse affect on tourism Ms Waters responded that her business of nine years has a strong repeat client base and that customers know this is an isolated incident. She is confident the number of visitors to the Bridge to Nowhere and Mountains to Sea cycle trail will continue to grow and that nobody will judge the area any differently because of it.

ENDS

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