Cemeteries

Currently operating cemeteries

Ruru Lawn Cemetery

Front entrance off Ruru Road or back entrance Raymond Road (off Bromley Road)

Opened in 1941, Ruru Lawn Cemetery covers 15.1427 hectares and has granite and bronze plaques at ground level. It has a large RSA section and separate areas are set aside for different denominations. The victims of the infamous 1947 Ballantyne’s fire are buried here and there is a memorial to them on site.

The lawn cemetery layout has created significant problems including subsidence and damage to the ground level plaques. A programme has been in place to construct kerb areas for plaque placement to alleviate maintenance problems.

Ballantyne’s Fire Memorial

Ballantyne’s department store in Colombo Street was the scene of one of New Zealand's most disastrous fires late in the afternoon of 18 November 1947. A total of 41 people died and damage was put at half a million pounds. The fire was first discovered in the basement of the wooden building but the alarm was not given immediately. The actual time the alarm was received by the fire brigade was 3.46 pm. Onlookers say that within 15 minutes of their first noticing the black smoke billowing from the building, it was past saving. Of three shopgirls who jumped after being trapped on upper storeys of the three-storey building, one died and two were seriously injured.

A Royal Commission of Inquiry - which later sat for 65 days and heard 186 witnesses - criticised the firefighters for failure to take effective action in the first 10 minutes after their arrival because they did not recognise the potential danger.

The company's store, established in 1864, was one of the best known in New Zealand. The premises covered about an acre of ground. All those who died were members of the staff of about 300.

A map of the Ruru Lawn Cemetery can be viewed here [PDF, 2.68 MB, free PDF reader].