Tairua Bar tragedy: Injured children wake from induced comas

Onboard the Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter as they respond to a boat that flipped on the Tairua-Pauanui bar. Video / Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust / Supplied

The two young children critically injured after the boat they were in flipped crossing the Tairua Bar earlier this month have now woken from their induced comas.

A man in his 60s died and two adults and two children were injured after being thrown from their boat near Pauanui in the Coromandel on January 5 during a horrific boating incident.

Emergency services rushed to the Tairua bar in the Coromandel Peninsula in early January. Photo / Supplied

The two children were flown to Starship hospital in a critical condition with their mother, while the male survivor was treated on the ground in a moderate condition.

However, almost two weeks after the tragedy the boy and girl have now woken from their induced comas but still face a long road to recovery, according to a Givealittle page set up by a friend of the family, Kristina Dunne.

One of the children is still in ICU fighting infections, while the other is making good progress in a ward.

But with both children still in hospital, they still face a long road to recovery, with many unknowns, Dunne wrote on the page.

The Givealittle page has already raised more than $18,000 to go towards the family's emergency living expenses, loss of income and any further support for the children.

Both children are still in hospital and face a long road to recovery. Photo / Supplied

Dunne said the woman, her husband and their two kids are well-loved and the first to help anyone in need. They were already feeling overwhelmed with love and support, she said.

Aucklander Campbell Wright was on a boat going out fishing when he saw 20 to 30 people in the water trying to right the stricken vessel, which he estimated was about 5m long.

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Speaking with the Herald at the time, he said it took a lot of people and a long time to get the boat upright.

"There was a big cheer when they got it over."

Along with the rescue helicopters, two ambulances, two managers and a rapid response unit were sent to the Vista Paku area to help.

Two days earlier a boatload of people had a lucky escape when rough seas flipped their vessel while they attempted to cross the Tairua bar.

Police, Coastguard and Surf Life Saving also responded to the boating incident.

A police investigation into the circumstances that led to the boat overturning is currently underway.

New Zealand is on track to having one of its worst summers ever, with 32 people drowning since December 1. The official holiday period - between December 24, 2021 to January 5, 2022 - was the deadliest on New Zealand's waterways in nearly 25 years.