A helicopter returns with the latest victim in Te Pua, Far North. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Whakatāne charter boat operators are thinking of "well-respected" skipper Lance Goodhew whose boat Enchanter sank during a storm in the Far North on Sunday night.
They say Goodhew, who survived the ordeal, is a longtime member of the local fishing community and a "very capable" skipper.
Five people rescued afterthe sinking are now out of hospital, and the bodies of four people were found today.
Police say search efforts to find a fifth person continue.
Whakatāne Sports Fishing Club president Karmann Tresidder said Goodhew was a "well-respected" skipper in the community and the incident was "bloody tragic".
She said it hit "very close to home" because he still ran fishing charters out of Whakatāne from time to time - heading out to around Ranfurly Banks and White Island.
"He is very well known in our fishing community, and for us, it is a tragedy because the boat still does come here every now and again."
Diveworks Charters owner Phil van Dusschoten skippered Enchanter when it first arrived in Whakatāne in the late 1980s working alongside the original owner.
Enchanter was later bought by local kiwifruit grower Barry Carter who sold it to Goodhew around 2000, van Dusschoten said.
Van Dusschoten was saddened by the news and described the vessel as a "very strong boat".
He believed it had been out in weather like last night's without issue and his heart went out to everyone involved.
"It is really sad to see a really good strong boat go, but nothing is invincible," he said.
The fishing vessel sunk off the Northland coast on Sunday night.
"Lance is one of those people you don't forget when you meet him, he is a very good fisherman."
He said the boat was originally designed for deep sea fishing and was the first vessel in Whakatāne legally allowed to fish Ranfurly Banks.
Former club president Goose Haddock, who had known Goodhew since he first started Enchanted Fishing Charters, was in shock and said the incident was "hard to talk about".
"It is not a nice day for Whakatāne and the fishing community."
He said Goodhew had been operating out of Mangonui for roughly 15 years and described him as a "very capable" skipper.
"He is a very confident fisherman and runs a very good business. It is a tragic thing that has happened."
He believed the boat sinking was "an accident and a tragedy".
"My condolences to everyone involved."
Ezyfishing Charters owner Lindsay Hunt, who has known Goodhew for about 13 years, said he was a very competent operator.
"Our heart goes out to everybody involved."
It's understood a group of people from Auckland and the Waikato were onboard the Enchanter fishing vessel when it first raised the alarm just after 8pm on Sunday.
Goodhew then radioed into Radio Mangonui at 10pm saying he was about an hour off North Cape before losing signal, iwi leader Penetaui Kleskovic said.
Enchanter skipper Lance Goodhew is among the survivors of the boating tragedy. Photo / File
An hour later the boat was submerged underwater at Murimotu, leaving the 10 onboard scrambling for survival.
"Apparently it was on their journey north back to the Three Kings that they struck torrential weather."
The charter boat left from its base in Mangonui in the Far North for a five-day fishing trip and there was understood to have been the skipper, a crew hand and a group from Auckland and Waikato onboard.
