By Patrick Begley
- Pregnant Sydney siege survivor Julie Taylor says her unborn baby is healthy
- Gunman Man Haron Monis 'caught on CCTV in Martin Place' an hour before siege
The gerberas and daffodils, roses and lilies will soon be cleared away. But the massive floral tribute to the victims of the Martin Place siege will not go to waste.
The stalks and petals will eventually be collected by the Red Cross, "put into clean compost and laid at an appropriate memorial site", a Department of Premier and Cabinet spokesman said.
Sea of blooms: A girl adds flowers to the tributes at Martin Place.Credit: Daniel Munoz
"The government is consulting with the families about where the memorial site should be."
Mourners are free to continue laying flowers this weekend, adding to the thousands of bouquets that have built up since Tuesday morning.
An additional site for laying flowers has been set up outside the Lindt Cafe where Katrina Dawson and Tori Johnson were killed.
The boxes of melted Lindt chocolates may not survive but the cards and notes will be preserved.
Condolence books will be available for signing at Martin Place until Sunday evening and at the Opera House and Parliament House until the end of January.
"The condolence books will be bound in several volumes and one complete copy will be provided to each family," the spokesman said.
People can pay their tributes online at nsw.gov.au
The NSW government has been liaising with overseas authorities to see how they dealt with the massive outpouring of grief that accompanied events such as the death of Princess Diana and the Boston Marathon bombing.