A family member of the seven people killed in a horror crash in Marlborough on Sunday says he's shocked and devastated to lose his relatives "in the blink of an eye".
The crash happened at about 7:30am, just south of Picton - as the Auckland family was heading north to catch the ferry across the Cook Strait.
"It's just shocking, to happen that fast," relative David Lagud told the NZ Herald.
"In a blink of an eye, it's all gone," said Lagud, the brother of Pedro Clariman - who survived the crash.
Multiple tributes to the victims have also been posted on social media. The victims on Monday were named as Paul and Diseree Brown, 61 and 48 and their youngest son Mark, 14.
Diseree's sister Divine Dolar, 56, and Divine's daughter Flordeliza Dolar, 19 were also killed in the crash. Clariman and Luie Lagud, 16, survived.
Clariman's partner died alongside baby daughter Mika.
Diseree and her children moved to New Zealand from the Phillippines several years ago, the Herald reported.
"God bless the souls of those who died in this car crash… may they rest in peace," one person wrote on the Pinoys in NZ Facebook group.
"So sad for what happen [sic] to this family," said another person who said they knew the victims. "So shocking."
Two brothers involved in the crash were Pukekohe High School students - one of whom died while the other remained in the hospital.
Speaking to RNZ, principal Richard Barnett said described the victims as a "lovely family".
"Obviously, we hope that the one student who's very badly injured by that accident - we hope and pray he will recover," Barnett said.
Investigations into the crash were ongoing, police said.
