Police vehicles parked outside Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch on the second anniversary of the terror attacks. Photo: AFP
Six years ago, the March 15 mosque attacks in Christchurch left 51 people dead and 89 were injured.
It was New Zealand's worst mass shooting, and remembered as one of our darkest days.
But it was also a time when many communities came together to help those affected by the tragedy. First Up spoke to some of those volunteers.
At the time of attacks in 2019, Harmandeep Singh lived less than 500 metres from Masjid Al-Nur. That Friday afternoon he saw people running out of the mosque.
His first instinct was to help the injured, but he was stopped by police.
"I was actually coming back home for lunch and I saw people screaming and running from the mosque. I parked my car and quickly ran towards the mosque. I stood on the corner because then, police came around and they said 'don't come close'."
Singh was the secretary of his local Sikh temple, just a kilometre away from Al Noor Mosque. Immediately after the attacks, the Sikh community opened its doors to neighbouring Muslims in need.
"We had people sleeping in in the gurdwara for night and having meals there, and then we also went to the shelter in Hagley Park to offer our help."
He said it was part of his faith to offer help where needed.
"When we try to help, we don't really see the caste or religion. We could actually see what they were going through and we helped - what we offered was very small."
Help also came from other faith groups far away. The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh raised more than US $650,000 for victims' families, after the Muslim support they'd received following the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.
Wellington mourners gather at the Wellington Islamic Centre to pay their repects. Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-King
In the days after the Christchurch attacks, Muslim elder Kamran Chida and his wife flew down from Auckland.
"We went with some community workers and met as many people as we could at the hospital, and tried to console them and tried to bring the spirituality into it."
In Islam, being physically present with those grieving was considered a form of help.
"It is huge and extremely important, even here. When somebody is just unwell, we have to go and visit them and find out how they're doing and do what you can.
"[It's] actually a community requirement. It's a spiritual obligation in Islam on each of us."
Kamran vividly remembered the hospitality that he was shown in Christchurch, despite the tragic situation.
"We were very warmly received. In fact, we went there and we told them 'please don't do any formalities' and they would have either lunch or dinner or whatever ready, or like, there would be a small reception for us."
He had kept in touch with most of the survivors he met in 2019, and returned to Christchurch to meet with families .
'Total pandemonium'
Anan Zaki was working as a local reporter close to Masjid al-Nur at the time of the attacks. When news started coming through about an incident unfolding, Anan headed to Christchurch Hospital.
Muslim himself, the tragedy felt personal. At the hospital, Anan says he quickly realised it was not like anything he'd reported on before.
"It was total pandemonium. People were in tears, a lot of frightened faces, the poor medical staff were frantic.
"I remember vividly, actually, this poor young chap - he came up to me and he said, 'Have you seen my brother? He's only three or four. He's just a little boy. Have you seen him?' And at the time, I said 'No, I haven't seen him. I'm sorry, but I'll keep. I'll try and look for him.'
"I asked him what happened and he said 'Someone had just come into the mosque and started shooting.' So that was the first confirmation that I personally had of what was happening."
And Anan did try to find the young boy.
"Every time they wheeled out someone, I was trying to see for him, I looked around the place and the ED to see if I could find him - this is me trying to do my bit in the most horrific situation."
He later learned the boy was the youngest victim of the shooting.
While he was there as a reporter, Anan said as someone with a Muslim background he could approach the situation with a different lens, and share stories of people who may not have had their voices heard otherwise.
"We're such a small community in Christchurch, there's no one single Muslim community. It's a community made-up of different communities, there's so many different cultures and because we were so small.
"I knew people who were meant to be there that day and for one reason or the other, went to a different mosque."
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