![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/4JTXN28_dji_fly_20260124_153248_507_1769814379212_photo_jpeg.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\nSurfers participated in a paddleout during the 2026 Grom Series.
\nPhoto: Supplied\n<\/p>\n
Surfers participated in a paddleout on Saturday during the first event of the 2026 Billabong Grom Series to pay their respects to the victims of the Mount Maunganui landslide<\/a>.<\/p>\n The paddleout was organised by Surfing New Zealand and Bay Boardriders, who are hosting the event at Tay Street Beach, Mount Maunganui.<\/p>\n Surfing New Zealand chief executive Ben Kennings said it was organised as a way to “go out and pay our respects”.<\/p>\n Kennings said people were coming to the event from all around the country to have fun and it was a good opportunity to acknowledge the lives lost in the landslip.<\/p>\n “Whenever we lose someone, the surf community does it,” Kennings said, referring to a paddleout, and he said it was a good way to acknowledge that things were “not normal” in Mount Maunganui.<\/p>\n Surfers included those participating in the event, as well as local surfers.<\/p>\n The second day of competition takes place on Sunday, one of three stops in the series, with the next event at Whangamat\u0101, before finishing at Piha in late February.<\/p>\n State of Emergency extended<\/p>\n The State of Emergency declared for Tauranga following recent severe weather has been extended until Wednesday.<\/p>\n The Tauranga City Council said the focus remains firmly on supporting the recovery operation and the whanau of the six people who died in the landslide.<\/p>\n The memorial along the fenced-off area will remain, but all messages and momentos will be relocated to the He Maimai Aroha Community Care Centre, when the cordon is moved.<\/p>\n Business owners or residents inside the cordoned-off area will need a permit to get through the road closures with a vehicle, the Tauranga City Council said.<\/p>\n Earlier on Saturday, Fire and Emergency stood down its specialist Urban Search and Rescue team at Mount Maunganui<\/a>.<\/p>\n