3 dead in Hastings named

Police in Hastings are investigating the deaths of a woman and her two young children after their bodies were discovered this morning.
The three were found dead in their house in Rockwood Place, Haumoana, just before 10am today. A family member was visiting the house and discovered their bodies.
Detective Senior Sergeant Dave De Lange said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the deaths and police were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.
The three dead are:
• Melissa Dorward, 31 and her two daughters
• Keira Watson, aged 4
• Ellah Watson, aged 2 years 8 months
Mr De Lange said at this stage it appears the mother and her two children died in the house. Police won’t be able to confirm their cause of death until post mortems have been done.
“I would stress though that investigations are nowhere near complete and there is still a lot of work to be done to ascertain how they died and under what circumstances,” Mr de Lange said.
“Until we can confirm those facts, we are not in a position to confirm any rumour, speculation or other people’s versions of events.”
None of the three had any obvious injuries. There were no weapons found at the Rockwood Place property.
Police have been speaking today to various family members and friends of the three dead people. Mr De Lange said it was not appropriate at this time to comment on the family circumstances of the mother and her children. That information was part of the ongoing investigation.
“Until we get a clearer picture of what took place and the circumstances surrounding the three deaths, it would be unwise to indulge in conjecture.”