| 37 nzdairy DAIRY PEOPLE » Tauhara Farms True grit sees Lawrence survive accident Virginia Wright Laurence credits his work managing the two units for helping to keep him going, together with the ongoing love and support of his family (pictured). Laurence Walden is in his seventh season managing a dairy unit for the Tauhara Moana Trust Farms just north of Taupo, his fourth season running two. A few years ago he had his eyes set on contract milking but having won Farm Manager of the year for the Central Plateau, and coming third in New Zealand, he was offered the running of the second unit instead which he was happy to accept. He now oversees one 400 effective hectare unit, calving down just over 1200 cows with a 60 bale rotary; and another 375 effective hectare unit milking around 1100 cows with a 65-a-side herring bone shed. Both units have the flat to rolling contours typical of the area, with pumicey soils meaning they’re prone to drought. They don’t flow into Lake Taupo but as suppliers to the Maori-owned dairy company, Miraka, and part of the Te Ara Miraka scheme, they keep a close eye on everything to do with water, along with other environmental concerns. Kaitiakitanga (guardianship) is at the core of Miraka’s business and they offer a comprehensive bonus and incentive scheme to encourage their suppliers to practice the highest standards in animal welfare, staff management, and sustainable land practices. It’s the geothermal resource considered a local taonga that Miraka Dairy Company uses to run its plant, and it was that geothermal phenomenon that brought Laurence to grief two years ago this August in what is generally referred to as a hunting accident. Laurence had spent the morning with his younger sons Reihana (then 9yrs) and Tawhiri (then 3yrs) on the quad bike, taking the dogs out for a run in the nearby forest. “It was calving so I just hadn’t had a lot of time with my kids. I took the dogs out for a run at the same time. and I really wasn’t going out with the intention of hunting. We turned to come home and the dogs were gone.” He dropped the boys off, swapped the quad bike for a truck and headed back to find the dogs. As he puts it in a nutshell “I was walking along the side of a warm river when the bank gave way, and that was where the hot water was coming into the creek.” The geothermal water typically found around Taupo, home to several of New Zealand’s geothermal zones, is at source a minimum of 70 degrees Celsius. At its hottest geothermal water runs to 220 degrees plus. When Laurence somehow scrambled out of the creek (he’s still in awe of what adrenaline can help you do in a crisis) he set out for home the only way possible, on foot, and luckily with enough cell phone coverage to reach his wife Emma. He was able to describe his whereabouts sufficiently that his older son Tayhn (18yrs) set out to find him while Emma rang 111. The ambulance crew took one look at him and called the helicopter which flew him straight to Intensive Care. He had third degree burns to 42% of his body requiring a combination of skin and muscle grafts. After six months off work and numerous operations he knows he’s lucky to be alive, and he’s deeply grateful for the support of his bosses. “I go to the gym most nights to get strong and get the mobility back in my legs. I’ve got another surgery coming up and potentially laser surgery after that to loosen the skin Tauhara Farms Limited Partnership Our large modern fleet of caterpillar equipment is available to handle a variety of projects from large civil construction works to smaller land development. 105 Poihipi Road, Taupo 3351, New Zealand 07 378 9610 info@seayearthmovers.co.nz Proud to support Tauhara Farms Yamaha Sales & Service • Repairs Parts/Accessories • YMF Finance and YMI Insurance We Service/Repair all Makes & Models of Motorcycles 41 Nukuhau St, Taupo Phone: 07 378 2453 • Fax: 07 378 2451 A/H: 021 465 833 • E: sales@promoto.co.nz Laser Electrical Taupo Proud to be the Electrical Contractor for Tauhara Farms and I’m really looking forward to putting it behind me and spending more time with my family,” says Laurence. He credits his work managing the two units at least in part for helping to keep him going through the hard times and intensive rehabilitation, together with the ongoing love and support of his family. “I was walking along the side of a warm river when the bank gave way, and that was where the hot water was coming into the creek”
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