More families were torn apart at the weekend when the lives of two teenagers who were too young to hold drivers' licences ended.
They had stolen a car and fled from police.
The car was said to be driven at dangerously high speeds and crashed after the police ended their chase.
Video footage emerged showing the car sending sparks flying before it collided with a pole in Masterton.
The incident came only a week after the death of a 16-year-old in a similar crash in South Auckland.
The 15-year-old driver of the car was also critically injured.
Search the internet and you will find New Zealand is not the only country facing the needless end of teen lives in car pursuits.
Pages of links to stories from around the world show a similar situation when bored young people decide to steal a car and when cornered make the decision to run for it.
Vehicle pursuits never end well - no-one goes to the result of an authorised police pursuit to hear the police say: "Well, that was a tidy finish.''
If the pursuit is terminated by a police supervisor, it is bad because the suspect has either got away or the speed is too fast to continue chasing safely.
If the chase is authorised, it is unlikely to have a pretty ending.
The vast majority of the time, the suspect ends up needing medical attention by the time it is over.
This might be for something minor, such as flushing pepper spray out of eyes, pulling Taser barbs out of flesh, or treating a dog bite.
It might be something major, such as pronouncing the driver and the passengers dead after the car hits a pole or tree at 160kmh.
Harder to fathom is why so many young people decide to risk their lives in such a futile and often fatal way.
Alan Maxwell, co-ordinator of Wairarapa Anglican Young, said three of the four teens in the car attended the group he founded in Featherston nine months ago and they helped with working bees.
The bottom line, he said, was they get bored and if they are not given things to do, they find stupid activities and make stupid choices.
At some point, a community has to take responsibility otherwise the children are not going to be the only ones to die this year.
However, Mr Maxwell, sadly, misses the point.
Communities provide plenty of things for young people to do.
At 14 and 15, teenagers are just starting or should be proceeding with their secondary schooling.
Sport is an option, yet recent statistics show falling participation by young people.
This is despite the efforts of volunteers around the country who rise early on weekend mornings to supervise school sports teams.
Study is also a way to a better life.
A plethora of activities await young people.
And one must ask where are the families in all of this.
Although the families are now grieving for their loss of sons and daughters, stepping in earlier and taking responsibility for their children may have prevented this latest tragedy.
There have been calls for police to engage more with teenagers but surely that happens already.
No-one can force young people to listen but showing boundaries and good behaviour as a parent can go a long way to preventing needless death and injury.
There are more than 2000 fleeing driver incidents every year with about 16% of them ending in crashes.
The message is not getting through.
Take all the liberties you want with your own life and death - but running from the police puts scores of people in harm's way, even for a short pursuit.
No matter the charge or the perceived consequences, never run from the police.
It can only end badly.
Nothing is worth this tragic loss of life.
