Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Southland pair attend Erebus memorial









Two Southland men orphaned by the Erebus tragedy yesterday made a pilgrimage to the continent their parents never returned from.

Dean Carleton, of Winton, and Invercargill man Grant Colbran flew to Antarctica with 102 other family members for a service to remember their loved ones.

Some 257 were killed on November 28, 1979, when Air New Zealand flight 901 flew into the side of Mt Erebus.

Six Southlanders died on the ill-fated DC10, in what is New Zealand's worst aviation disaster.

Mr Colbran's parents, North Makarewa couple Cyril and Yvonne Colbran, won the trip in a 4ZA radio station promotion. Invercargill broadcaster John "Boggy" McDowell was four months into his job when he gave away the tickets on air.

Three Southland passengers, Mr Carleton's parents, Otautau couple Barrie and Marion Carleton and Bryan Holtham, of Invercargill, were among the 44 passengers whose remains were not identified or recovered – 16 bodies were unidentifiable and 28 were never found.

Owen Murray, from Mataura, also died.

Yesterday Mr Carleton, Mr Colbran and the other Erebus disaster relatives left Christchurch Airport on a special air force flight at 9.10am.

The Boeing 757 landed near Scott Base about 2pm for an outdoor service conducted at the koru sculpture site, which has views of Erebus.

Weather permitting, the family members were to be flown around the crash site at Mt Erebus, 37km away from the base, before departing about 8pm and arriving back in Christchurch about 1am to-day.

It is the second time family members of the victims have been taken to Antarctica. The first was during the 30th anniversary commemorations of the tragedy in 2009.

Yesterday's trip means representatives of all but 20 of the victims' families have now been to the ice.



By

NEHA JAIN

      

   

     



            
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