All-night search for two marooned men
TWO young men had to scour a cliff face to safety after their boat sank off the coast of the Bay of Islands.
The pair voyaged out to Moturua Island in their five-metre runabout boat on Friday, but their family contacted the coastguard about 9pm to say there had been no contact.
Volunteers rallied on land and sea to search the area, before standing down shortly after 4am yesterday morning.
By first light, the Coastguard Air Patrol took to the skies from Ardmore Airport to support the rescue crew, which had continued their search.
However, shortly before 10am the two men were spotted by a member of the public – safe but tired after a long night marooned.
‘‘Credit goes to them for having communications equipment and telling their family where they were going and when they planned to be back,’’ said Nico Dooderman, duty officer at the Coastguard Operations Centre.
‘‘It’s this and their lifejackets that have made all the difference to the outcome, which otherwise could have been much worse.
‘‘The family was able to provide details on their last known location, which dramatically reduces the search area and the time taken to locate the pair.’’
The coastguard provided them with a medic, plus food and water once ashore. One of the men sustained moderate injuries and awaited the Northland Emergency Services Helicopter.
Meanwhile, volunteers onboard Howick Rescue One pulled two kayakers out of the water near Kawakawa Bay in east Auckland yesterday morning.
The pair had fallen out of their kayaks and lost their paddles. One had hypothermia. They were transferred to a waiting ambulance.
Dooderman said there had been 200 trips logged with the coastguard around the Bay of Islands yesterday.
‘It’s great to see boaties heading out to enjoy the many waterways around the region. We’re here to help Kiwis get the best out of their boating safely and with confidence.
‘‘We can’t stress enough the importance of downloading the Coastguard app to check your local marine weather. You can also log your trip report on the app so that someone knows where you’re going and when you plan to be back.’’
‘We’re here to help Kiwis get the best out of their boating safely.’ NICO DOODERMAN