Launch sinks off Tauranga coast; 14 people rescued

Mōtītī Island, off the Bay of Plenty coast.

• Fourteen people were rescued from a sinking boat near Mōtītī Island off Pāpāmoa Beach.
• Coastguard volunteers, a nearby boatie and Customs vessel Hawk V helped in the rescue.
• All those rescued were safely taken to shore with no serious injuries reported.

Fourteen adults have been rescued from a sinking boat off the coast of Tauranga.

Coastguard New Zealand said the 18.2m (60ft) launch sank near Mōtītī Island, off Pāpāmoa Beach.

The Coastguard was alerted by police about 1.40pm to a boat taking on water with 14 people on board, a spokeswoman said.

“Coastguard volunteers from Maketu, Tauranga and Whakatāne responded.

“A nearby boatie and Customs vessel Hawk V also supported.”

At 2.09pm, all 14 people on board were transferred to Coastguard Maketu’s rescue vessel, Eastpack Rescue, and taken to shore in Tauranga.

Maketu Coastguard's rescue boat EastPack Rescue was among those that rushed to the boat in distress.

“The vessel is currently submerged. There are no serious injuries,” the spokeswoman said.

Hato Hone St John said it assessed 14 people at the Coastguard Tauranga headquarters at Sulphur Point.

Two had minor injuries but did not need to be taken to hospital. The rest were uninjured.

St John was notified at 1.34pm and sent a helicopter, rapid response vehicle, ambulance, two operations managers and a major incident support team.

The Tauranga-based Aerocool Rescue Helicopter service said a crew responded just after 2pm, but they were not at the scene for long.

Police told the Bay of Plenty Times that they were alerted about 1.30pm to a boat taking on water east of Mōtītī Island.

“Fourteen people on board are all accounted for and back on dry land, but it appears police were not required.”

Coastguard Tauranga said its TECT Rescue boat was stood down.

The sparsely populated Mōtītī Island is 21km northeast of Tauranga.

Sandra Conchie has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.