TAKIPU RECOVERY

TAIRĀWHITI Museum staff are helping to protect taonga from damage as whānau of cyclone-stricken Te Karaka marae Takipu and others around the region continue their recovery efforts.
Takipu Marae whānau were devastated to find the marae had been flooded after Te Karaka township was inundated by floodwaters when Cyclone Gabrielle tore through the region.
The insides of the wharenui (Te Poho o Pikihoro) and wharekai (Tūranga Tangata Rite) and ablution block floors were left covered in silt. 
The water and silt did not reach the whakairo (carvings) inside the wharenui, which is fully carved.  But it took four days to remove the silt and damaged items from the buildings and the extreme dampness put whakairo and tukutuku at risk.
Whakairo expert Dean Whiting is to inspect the whakairo while fellow conservator Rangi Te Kanawa will look at the tukutuku before they advise the marae on the next steps.  
“We are humbled by the huge amount of support from people within Tairāwhiti, across the country and from overseas,” Takipu Marae trustee Hine August said.
“Many of our people have expressed that they feel helpless because they are unable to be here. Their words of support and acknowledgement matter to us to be able to carry on with what we have to do.”
Various organisations, groups and individuals have assisted the marae in its recovery including Te Rūnanga o Tūranganui-ā-Kiwa, Te Karaka and Gisborne fire services, Waikohu Civil Defence, Gisborne Boys’ High School, Destiny Church and Tairāwhiti Museum.
The museum has played its part by ensuring taonga are kept safe while work is done on the marae. 
Tairāwhiti Museum director Eloise Wallace said it was jointly decided it would be best to transfer the photographs and other smaller taonga to the museum for temporary safe-keeping. 
“Museum staff take an active role in helping provide advice and support for taonga at marae and held in the community, so after an event like Cyclone Gabrielle — where taonga may be at risk because they or the building they are in has been damaged — our role is very much to utilise our expertise here, equipment and our facility to provide that support where it is needed in our community,” Ms Wallace said.
Several of the museum team are working with marae whānau on taonga recovery and care — Ms Wallace, Taharakau Stewart (kaitieki Māori), Julia Hardie (collection manager) and Dudley Meadows (curator of photography).  
“We have been on site, set up a clean working in space in the wharenui — bringing in all the equipment and materials we need — and carefully worked through a process for the safe removal of the taonga from the whare and their transfer to the museum.” 
They recorded where all the photographs and other taonga were in situ on the walls, did an initial condition assessment, gave each taonga a number, took photographs as a matter of record, then wrapped each item in polythene. 
“We then transported them carefully back to the museum and we now have most of these taonga in the freezer in our secure store. 
“Freezing photographs, textiles and works on paper is a safe process that stops or slows mould growth which is the biggest risk to taonga that have been directly in water, or in a building with water damage and in very humid conditions over a number of days.” 
The country’s leading Māori paper conservator and National Library of New Zealand field conservator Vicki-Anne Heikell, who comes from Gisborne, has provided advice and support. 
“In due course we will start the next phase of the process for these taonga,” Ms Wallace said. 
“They will come out of the freezer one at a time and we will then be able to carefully assess and undertake appropriate conservation treatment. 
“Even though the taonga will be here at the museum for a time, we will keep in close, ongoing contact with the Takipu whānau and continue to work together so their taonga are given the best possible care.
“Our team thank those working on the clean-up at Takipu Marae for the warmth of their welcome under the most trying conditions, and all the support and assistance to the museum team as we’ve undertaken our mahi there.” 
The team were also keen to provide any advice and support to other marae, organisations and individuals across Tairāwhiti dealing with similar issues.
“It is recommended to always wear masks and gloves when handling taonga and to work in a well-ventilated space because of the risks of active mould which can grow very quickly in the conditions we have had since the cyclone. 
“We can provide advice here at the museum, or put you in touch with the appropriate people and we have some useful resources and how-to guides up on our Facebook page.
“The National Library has some great resources online for photographs and works on paper primarily. 
“For other materials, we recommend reaching out for some specific guidance for your situation. 
“I am happy for people to contact me directly at the museum if they’d like to have a chat and I can put people in touch with the appropriate expertise from specialist conservators.
“We are very fortunate that the collections held here in our museum facility were undamaged.
 “We put a lot of work into disaster planning and risk mitigation here at the museum so we are as prepared as we can be for disasters such as Cyclone Gabrielle. 
“We have a small team and limited space and resources, but we are committed to doing all we can to help people save damaged taonga in our community. We know that in the face of so much loss, the ability to save what is most precious to us becomes very important. 
“We can’t save everything, and yes sometimes there is no choice but to throw away furniture, whiteware and so on, but if you have a special treasures, even if they look very damaged, it may well be possible to salvage and recover them.”