Town in shock after boy falls off boat and drowns during the night

The body of a 6-year-old boy has been found after he fell off a boat in Marlborough.

The boy was reported missing from Havelock about 6.30am yesterday, police said.

It is understood the boy had been on a boat with his father and fell overboard. A resident told the Herald he understood the boy went missing between 1am and 6am.

The boy’s dad had checked on him at 1am and he was still sleeping, but when he checked again after 6am he had gone.

“They couldn’t find him.”

A check of the marina’s security cameras showed that he had not walked on to the wharf. It is understood they were from out of town.

The police dive squad recovered the body following a short search, the spokesperson said.

The dive squad arrived about 1.45pm and quickly found a body, which has been confirmed as the missing boy. The body had been retrieved by 3pm.

Havelock locals who spoke to the Herald said they were feeling very sad about it.

One shopkeeper who worked nearby said the town was in shock.

He said there had been a high police presence in the town earlier looking for the boy

And then the police dive squad arrived just after 1pm and found the boy very quickly. “Everyone is pretty sad about it. Pretty distraught. “It’s shocking.”

Another resident said it was pretty devastating for a small town of just over 800 people.

Police said next of kin have been advised and the matter referred to the Coroner. A post-mortem has also been requested.