A 68 year-old man died after he suffered cardiac arrest while tramping on the Milford Track yesterday morning.

Sergeant Tod Hollebon, of Te Anau, said the man, a Korean national and on holiday in New Zealand, collapsed on Mackinnon Pass at about 11:30am.

The track guide carried out CPR for some time, he said.

A helicopter was sent from Te Anau but the man was pronounced dead upon arrival, Mr Hollebon said.

Police said there were no suspicious circumstances to the death and the matter had been referred to the coroner.

Meanwhile, a 49 year-old man was airlifted to Southland Hospital with moderate injuries yesterday after he fell about 15 metres down a waterfall at Lake Manapouri.

The man fell the full height of the waterfall on Stockyard Track into shallow water at the base of the falls at about 1:30pm, Mr Hollebon said.

He suffered a broken elbow and broken foot.

''It was fortunate given the height he did not suffer more severe or fatal injuries, quite incredible really,'' he said.

A helicopter and winch-equipped Southern lakes search was sent from Te Anau and located the man, his wife and a friend at the waterfall.

The helicopter had to return with a long line to extract the man from the remote area, he said.

Very little detail was obtained by the man's wife and friend before cell phone coverage was lost, Mr Hollebon said.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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