Bay of Plenty Times
  • Bay of Plenty Times home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport

Locations

  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Katikati
  • Tauranga
  • Mount Maunganui
  • Pāpāmoa
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Bay of Plenty Times

Vehicle recovered after one year submerged at bottom of Rangataua Bay

David Beck
By David Beck
Multimedia journalist·Bay of Plenty Times·
7 Apr, 2021 06:22 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council has recovered a car submerged underwater at Rangataua Bay. Photo / Supplied

The Bay of Plenty Regional Council has recovered a car submerged underwater at Rangataua Bay. Photo / Supplied

A vehicle has been recovered from Rangataua Bay where it was submerged for more than a year.

However, how it came to be underwater remains a mystery.

On Tuesday, Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff waited until low tide to get a barge with a crane under the Maungatapu Bridge, then at high tide was able to reach the vehicle and recover it.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The green station wagon was so embedded into the shoreline that it had to be cut in pieces to get lifted out of the sand.

A crane lifts a vehicle out of the water. Photo / Supplied
A crane lifts a vehicle out of the water. Photo / Supplied

Bay of Plenty Regional Council compliance manager Stephen Mellor said it was not clear how the vehicle ended up in Rangataua Bay but estimated it had been there since about December 2019.

"We check with police prior to investigating and retrieving all vehicles in waterways to determine if the vehicle is stolen and/or part of an ongoing investigation," he said.

"Regional council has the ability to check vehicle owner details if a registration plate is identified. If owner details can be identified then we seek to recover the cost of removal from the owner.

"In this instance all means available to identify the owner of the vehicle had been removed and no owner was able to be identified."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

When no owner is able to be identified, the cost of the recovery is covered by the council.

Discover more

'Dogs in togs' pool swim cancelled due to rain forecast

07 Apr 04:14 AM

Almost as old as the hills: Tauranga Library turns 150

07 Apr 04:08 AM

Base track to close for three days for stair removal

06 Apr 10:26 PM

'Our staff deserve it': Business owners adopt new $20 minimum wage

07 Apr 09:00 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Bay of Plenty Times

Tauranga power cuts cause traffic chaos

11 Jul 01:33 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

'Moments are priceless': Silver Ferns stars reunite for TV reality show

11 Jul 12:00 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

10 Jul 11:07 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Tauranga power cuts cause traffic chaos

Tauranga power cuts cause traffic chaos

11 Jul 01:33 AM

Traffic lights are out on Hewlett Road, causing chaos for drivers.

'Moments are priceless': Silver Ferns stars reunite for TV reality show

'Moments are priceless': Silver Ferns stars reunite for TV reality show

11 Jul 12:00 AM
Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

10 Jul 11:07 PM
Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

10 Jul 10:57 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Bay of Plenty Times e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Bay of Plenty Times
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP