A father cried out 'is this really happening' after finding his three daughters dead at his new home in New Zealand days after being release from quarantine, his neighbours have said.
Orthopaedic surgeon Graham Dickason 'wailed' after finding two-year-old twins Karla and Maya and their older sister Liane, six, at their home in Timaru.
Mr Dickason discovered the tragedy shortly before 10pm on Thursday when he returned home after attending a work function at Timaru Hospital.
His churchgoing wife Lauren, 40, a fellow doctor, stood silently while appearing in the dock at Timaru District Court last night after being accused of murder.
Mrs Dickason looked drawn and distressed as she entered no plea and was remanded to a secure mental health unit until her next appearance, at Timaru High Court on October 5.
The couple, married for 15 years, had only been released from 14 days enforced Covid quarantine in a hotel following their life-changing flight from South Africa to start a new life days before the alleged murders.
Neighbours speculated stress after being quarantined 'for so long' could have left Mrs Dickason unable to cope.
The young family (pictured together) had just moved to New Zealand from Pretoria, South Africa and recently finished their 14-day hotel quarantine
There was nothing in their background to suggest a troubled family, according to their long-standing nanny in Pretoria, Mendy Sibanyoni
The children's father Graham Dickason, who is an orthopaedic surgeon, had returned to their Timaru home at around 10pm on Thursday where he discovered the children's bodies. Pictured: Graham and Lauren
Neighbours in Timaru described distressed wailing shortly after Mr Dickason arrived home on Thursday night and watched as he was consoled by another doctor who lived next door.
His wife was taken to hospital after police arrived minutes later.
Mr Dickason was heard by neighbours screaming 'is this really happening?' when he arrived home.
'The first noise we heard was somebody sobbing, and then we heard a loud thud like someone just slammed a door,' the neighbour Jade Whaley told Stuff.
'We could see someone through our fence wandering behind the house and wailing.'
Another resident, Karen Cowper, described hearing a man crying and saying 'is this really happening?'.
'We asked him if he was okay. He did not respond to us and was screaming and crying hysterically,' Ms Cowper said.
A former neighbour in South Africa, who did not want to be named, said the couple were very 'grateful' for their children.
'They absolutely adored those children. They were so grateful for having them because they struggled to get pregnant and when they finally got the children, they loved them,' the neighbour said.
'Something just doesn't add up. I don't know if it's the stress from New Zealand, moving there, being quarantined for so long and everything - just not coping with that going on.
Churchgoing doctor Lauren Dickason, who struggled for years to get pregnant, appeared in court last night charged with murdering her three young daughters. Above: Mrs Dickason with husband Graham, two-year-old twins Karla and Maya and their older sister Liane, six
Many details were suppressed under New Zealand law and no cause of death for any of the three girls has emerged. Above: Mrs Dickason's children
Just four months ago, Mrs Dickason had paid a loving public tribute to her husband on Facebook, writing: 'Happy 15th wedding anniversary ... What an adventure,' she wrote
'So I think whatever happened is not normal, it wasn't normal circumstances,' the neighbour said.
The girls' grandmother said the family was struggling to comprehend what had happened.
'It hasn't actually sunk in yet. We're in a terrible state of shock. We are devastated,' she told Stuff.
But the couple's long-standing nanny in Pretoria Mendy Sibanyoni said there was nothing in their background to suggest a troubled family.
Both parents had 'loved their kids like nobody's business,' said Mrs Sebanyoni, who Mrs Dickason had
