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Kōrero: Tsunamis

Remains of Pouawa bridge

Remains of Pouawa bridge

The Gisborne tsunami of 26 March 1947 swept away the Pouawa bridge. The decking was later found about 800 metres upstream.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Tairawhiti Museum, Te Whare Taonga O Te Tairawhiti

Source: Auckland Weekly News, 2 April 1947

Permission of Tairawhiti Museum, PO Box 716, Gisborne, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

Ngā whakaahua me ngā rauemi katoa o tēnei kōrero

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Willem de Lange rāua ko Eileen McSaveney, Tsunamis – 20th-century and recent tsunamis, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/6232/remains-of-pouawa-bridge (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Willem de Lange rāua ko Eileen McSaveney, i tāngia i te 2 March 2009.

Comments

Bob Burgess
13 March 2021
I was just on 12 when the tsunami happened and don't remember the earthquake at all but did see the aftermath when my father took the family for a drive as far as the Pouawa bridge site a day or so later. I believe that fish were being picked up from the maize paddocks at Murawai after the event. There was a story that a coastal shipping vessel tied up alongside in the inner harbour was in danger of falling over onto the wharf due to the harbour surge. I have no idea if that is true or not.
J.H.
11 December 2015
Thanks for the article. As a child I had often heard about the tsunamai, or tidal wave as it was called in those days, at Turihaua. The family were friends of Fred & Mrs. Hall, so it was great, albeit a ghastly experience, to read and see some pictures after the event.