Yao Fang and Austen Keith Richardson New Zealand Police © New Zealand Police
© New Zealand Police
The loss of a “gifted” 10-year-old boy and his grandmother in a landslide near Welcome Bay has given a devastating human face to a disaster that is still unfolding. As recovery teams keep combing through mud and debris, their family is sharing who these two were in life, not just how they died. The search for others caught in the same chain of slips continues, even as tributes and hard questions start to build.
The pair were swept away when a hillside collapsed into their home on the outskirts of Pāpāmoa, part of a coastal community on New Zealand’s North Island that usually sells itself on sunshine and surf rather than tragedy. In the days since, relatives, neighbours and officials have been trying to balance raw grief with the practical grind of recovery, and to make sense of how a place that felt so safe could turn so suddenly lethal.
The “gifted” boy, his “Nai Nai,” and a family in shock
Police have now formally identified the victims as 10-year-old Austen Keith Richardson and his grandmother, Yao, who was described as a “beloved” Nai Nai by relatives. In a statement released through Police, the Family called Austen a “treasured son” who thrived in a Montessori class and lit up at the sight of numbers and equations. Separate reporting has echoed that description, with relatives and friends referring to him as Gifted and deeply curious, a child who was just starting to find his lane at school.
Yao, who was a 71-year-old grandmother, is being remembered as “much-loved,” the steady presence who helped hold multiple generations together. Relatives say she had travelled to stay with the Family at their Welcome Bay home, a property tucked into the green hills above Pāpāmoa, when the slip hit. In their statement, shared via Welcome Bay authorities, relatives said they were “absolutely devastated” but grateful that Austen and his grandmother were together at the end.
Friends have been sharing photos and memories online, including posts that identify Austen Keith Richardson by his full name and describe him as a bright kid who loved puzzles and science. One widely shared social media update, linked to Stuff, refers to “Austen Keith Richardson” alongside an elderly woman, underscoring how quickly their names have become shorthand for the human cost of this disaster. Another report, citing relatives who spoke after the formal name release on Jan, notes that Austen’s parents had watched him “light up” when working through equations, a detail that has resonated with families across New Zealand who see their own kids in that description.
A deadly chain of slips, and a search that is not over
The Welcome Bay tragedy is part of a wider pattern of landslides that have hammered parts of New Zealand’s North Island this month. Earlier this year, heavy rain triggered multiple slips that tore through homes and a campsite, killing at least Two of the people now formally identified as victims and leaving others unaccounted for. A detailed breakdown of the casualties, shared in a NEED TO KNOW briefing, notes that Two of the confirmed dead were caught when a slip smashed into their house, while others were hit at a campground that had filled up for the summer holidays.
Emergency crews are still working through that wider disaster zone, with search teams focusing on unstable hillsides and riverbanks where several children remain missing. An update shared on social media, via an account that has been posting regular field notes, stated that Two people died and several children were unaccounted for after landslides on January 22 in an area that lost road access and electricity. That same post stressed that search efforts continue, a point echoed in more formal updates that describe recovery teams working long shifts in difficult terrain. Officials have said the Welcome Bay Rd site, where Austen and Yao died, remains under geotechnical assessment, with Welcome Bay Rd still partially closed while crews stabilise the slope and investigators prepare material for the Coroner.
Local leaders have been blunt about the emotional toll. In one televised update, a spokesperson described relatives as “absolutely devastated,” a phrase that has since been picked up in written statements and in coverage that names the Pair as “Austen Keith Richardson and” his grandmother. Another report, drawing on interviews with the Family, notes that they are trying to focus on gratitude for the time they had, even as they face the bureaucratic grind of funerals, insurance and a coroner’s inquiry. For many in Much of New Zealand, the story has become a touchstone in a broader conversation about how communities built into steep, rain-soaked hillsides can live with the risk that comes with the view.
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