The body of a Jewish backpacker from London killed in an accident in New Zealand has come home for burial.
Sarah Katie Bond, 24, lost control of a quad bike near the Waitomo Caves on the North Island Aug. 9, according to the New Zealand Press Association.
The bike plunged about 100 feet down a steep bank. Police said she suffered fatal injuries when the bike landed on top of her.
“The body was prepared by the Chevra Kadisha,” Stephen Goodman, president of the New Zealand Jewish Council, told JTA. He said Chabad Rabbi Mendel Goldstein came from Christchurch to sit with the body at the family’s request.
Her body arrived back in London on Thursday night.
On Aug. 12, members of the Auckland Jewish community held a memorial service. The Maori community is preparing a tapu ceremony to cleanse the sacred area where she was killed on Monday, Goodman added.
Bond was only two weeks into a 10-month adventure to Australia and New Zealand. Although she was backpacking alone, she had joined several other travelers to go quad biking.
Bond’s mother Elizabeth told the UK’s Daily Mail: “Sarah was one of life’s great enthusiasts. She was so excited about this trip; she was so full of life.”
Her father Jack added: “We don’t regret her going, but obviously we regret that this accident happened, just two weeks into her trip.”
She is survived by her parents and two sisters.
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