Water toll hits 9

ANDREW GORRIE/Fairfax NZ

SEA AND AIR: A rescue helicopter takes part in the search operation at Titahi Bay in Wellington after a group of swimmers were caught in a rip.

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One man drowned and another is seriously ill after a fishing accident in Bay of Plenty.

And another man died after getting into difficulties while competing in the 2.5km Taupo Epic Swim.

The drownings toll just two weeks into the new year has already hit nine. It could yet be 10, with a search under way last night at Titahi Bay, Wellington, after a group of swimmers were caught in a rip. One remains unaccounted for.

It is understood a man in a dinghy rescued two teenage boys from the water and surfers rescued two older women. The missing person is thought to be a teenager.

The St John Ambulance got a 111 call shortly before 2pm yesterday after an incident at Welcome Bay, near Tauranga. Paramedics arrived soon after and tried to treat a 51-year-old Auckland man who had gone into cardiac arrest. He died at the scene.

Another man, believed to be a 49-year-old Tauranga resident, was rushed to Tauranga Hospital and is in a serious condition.

Senior Sergeant Eddie Lyttle, of Tauranga, said it appeared the men were netting for fish, and wind and the current may have been a factor in the pair getting into difficulty.

Members of the public helped the men from the water and without their aid the second man would probably have died, he said. "This is another example of the perils of netting for fish without consideration for personal safety, such as wearing life jackets, and taking the conditions into account."

Water Safety New Zealand chief executive Matt Claridge said the deaths showed many anglers weren't fully prepared.

"Whether people are fly fishing, tending crab pots, trawling from boats, diving or casting off rocks, we're urging people to remember the safety basics. Watch the weather, go with a buddy, use appropriate safety equipment and know your limits."

WATER TRAGEDIES

Holiday drownings 2010/2011

December 25: A 37-year-old man dies while snorkelling at Goat Island, north of Auckland.

December 30: Joseph Tufoua dies after jumping off Hamilton's Claudelands bridge into Waikato River.

December 31: Raymond Saunders, 68, drowns off the Coromandel coast when his boat is swamped.

January 2: A three-year-old boy dies while swimming in a river in Ruatoki, near Whakatane. Paua-diver Wayne Belmont, 42, drowns off Waikato's west coast. Inglis Tutuhou Henry, 72, of Gordonton dies near a boat ramp at Ruamahanga, near Thames. A 23-month-old girl drowns in a swimming pool at her parents' home in Marton, Rangitikei.

January 3: A man, 58, dies in the surf at Tairua, Coromandel. His death is linked to a medical condition. Anare Nayacatoga, 27, drowns off Seatoun Beach, Wellington. January 4: Woman in her 70s found floating in a West Auckland river.

- © Fairfax NZ News