The outdoor centre which organised Tuesday's fatal canyoning journey in the central North Island says it didn't get a MetService warning of rapidly rising waterways.
Six students and a teacher from Auckland's Elim Christian College died after the group of 12 got caught out by a rapidly rising Mangatepopo Stream, near Turangi.
As the bodies of the victims arrived back in Auckland and their funerals organised, staff at the centre said they had no record of receiving the 8.29am MetService warning.
The warning said heavy rain was possible in parts of Waikato down to Taranaki and Taupo and in Bay of Plenty and the East Coast, with heavy rain possibly arriving quickly.
"People in all these areas, especially Bay of Plenty and northern Gisborne, should look out for localised surface flooding and rapidly rising rivers and streams," the warning said.
However, Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre chief executive Grant Davidson the warning was not received.
The only fax the centre received was the 6.15am prediction of heavy rain, he told TV One News.
MetService had at 6.15am predicted heavy rain but did not include thunderstorms in the forecast. It sent out an amended version at 6.32am which included thunderstorms.
Dr Davidson said he wasn't at the centre on the day of the tragedy and wasn't aware if anyone raised the issue of rising water levels.
"I can't answer that question at the moment, so let's leave all the details of the incident to the review."
