The children of a former refugee couple who drowned at Muriwai Beach have described their parents' final moments.
Kay Dah Ukay and his wife Muy Thu Pa were swept off Flat Rock while fishing with their three of their nine children on Monday afternoon.
The family often went fishing there, but this time things went horribly wrong.
Nine-year-old son Jay says his father fell into the water while trying to pull up a fish caught on his rod. He and his siblings watched in horror as their mother desperately tried to help.
"She saw him go down and ran up real quick and got the rod - she didn't really notice the slippery rocks and she fell," Jay says.
Emergency services recovered the pair quickly and tried CPR, but both died.
A group of around 40 people, including family and members of the Burmese community, gathered at dawn on Tuesday to bless the site where the couple were swept away.
"It was pretty amazing and humbling, the community getting together," Daniel Lee from Surf Life Saving Northern Region (SLSNR) told Newshub.
He says rock safety has recently become a huge focus, with 11 people drowning under similar circumstances in the last five years.
"Check the conditions before you come out to the beach; make sure you're wearing the appropriate clothing and footwear as well, and always wear a lifejacket."
The Ukays moved to New Zealand 10 years ago after fleeing the Burmese army and spending a decade in a refugee camp.
Now they're facing tragedy the only way they know how - as a family.
"It's very important to stay together, to look after each other now our parents aren't here," says daughter Dah Htoo.
"Yesterday I saw my younger brother was alright, because he was just saying, 'Mother sleeping, parents are sleeping', but when he woke up this morning he called out for mother and father."
The family set a place for their parents at lunch on Tuesday for a last meal shared together in spirit, in keeping with Burmese tradition before they're forced to say their final goodbyes.
Newshub.
