Missing Tōrere fisherman: Search for Jason Kauta will continue on Thursday and Friday

Police are reassessing the search for Jason Kauta who failed to return from a fishing trip over the weekend. Photos / Supplied, Tourism Eastland

Items of interest reported on beaches today in the search for a missing Bay of Plenty fisherman have been discounted as not relevant, police say.

The search for Jason Kauta will resume today.

Kauta went out fishing by boat from Tōrere, near Ōpōtiki, around 7am on Sunday but failed to return.

Bad weather hampered the search for him on Wednesday and Kauta's niece Mia van den Broek told the Rotorua Daily Post this morning she had been told the teams searching were "reassessing the situation and how to go forth from here."

Ōpōtiki Coastguard president Ron Jones said only the Air Force was out searching because of the weather and all boats had been stood down.

In a statement released Wednesday evening, police said Coastguard aircraft will conduct a search at first light.

This will cover the northern end of Waihi Beach to the Motu River mouth. It will also cover the outlying islands, Motiti, Plate, Rurima and Whale.

A ground search of the coastline by Police Search and Rescue and Land Search and Rescue personnel is planned for Friday.

"Today police received reports of several items of interest found on beaches in the area but following examination, were able to discount them as not relevant to the search."

Police continue to ask members of the public who may be on the shoreline from Tōrere through to Maketu to be vigilant, and report any sighting of the following items of interest: a 100 litre white chilly bin, a red tote tank, wooden oars, and a yellow life jacket.

Anyone who comes across any of these items is asked to contact Police on 105 quoting file number 220418/0391.

Van den Broek described her uncle as a keen fisherman with a good sense of humour and a "massive heart".

She asked the public for contacts of people who go fishing from the Ōpōtiki to Te Kaha region and may have seen a 12ft fibreglass dinghy.

Kauta is described as around 1.8m tall and has a whānau name "Wharekino" written on his right arm on the inside of his tā moko.

Coastguard volunteers from Ōpōtiki, Whakatāne and Maketu searched at sea in the Torere area on Tuesday, while a RNZAF Orion also searched from the air.