In the dead of night, sometime in 1983/1984, two trainee radio technicians crept out of the staff hostel at the Himatangi Radio transmitting station and out into the darkness. Making their way to the main road they carefully (but not very quietly) removed the AA sign pointing towards the government communications station- stopping only to dive into the bushes every time a car drove past. Their mission complete, they snuck into the hostel and carefully hid the sign.

This AA sign remained a carefully guarded secret until 2016. The station had long gone- satellite communications led to it being obsolete and it was closed down in 1993, but a control panel and other equipment survived at the MAVtech Museum in Foxton. It now hangs from the ceiling and points the way to the radio exhibit. 

How many other road signs succumbed to pranks and hijinks in the decades the station operated? Nobody knows for sure- but given the stories we hear it probably wasn't just the one!

Penciled on back - Prank awaiting a recently married couple who will be building their home on this section in Tiro Tiro Rd. Fri. 27

Stamped on back with black ink – 25 JUN 1969

Stamped on back with black ink - Horowhenua Historical Society. Acc. No. 137 Date.

Typed on pieces of paper - Prank awaiting a newly married couple who will be building their home on this section in Tiro Tiro Road. June 1969.

Shed labelled “Maternity Home” as practical joke on a recently married couple who will be building their home on this section in Tiro Tiro Road. 1 B&W photo print

• 5 star rating Maternity Home to be erected on this site.

Painted on shed – Operating Theatre. (&) Waiting Room.

Any use of this image must be accompanied by the credit “Horowhenua Historical Society Inc.”