A man was plucked from Tauranga Harbour after bystanders saw a man struggling in the water.
Emergency services were called to Sulphur Point about 1.45pm yesterday after witnesses saw a man's head bobbing in and out of the water.
Police and ambulance responded to the event just in front at the Tauranga Yacht & Power Boat Club.
Witness Kathy Donnelly said she saw a man on the beach wrapped in a survival blanket and then loaded into an ambulance just after 2pm.
"We pulled up in our motor home to look at the view and next minute we see a ambulance and a body on the beach covered in one of those tinfoil survival blankets," she said.