Gisborne lifeguards rescue woman on final patrol day

Wainui SLSC lifeguards Zyanja Rudge (left) and Charlotte McDiarmid used a rescue tube to save a woman caught in a current at the beach during patrol on Sunday.

Wainui lifeguards were called into action on their final patrol day of the 2024-2025 season when a woman got into difficulty on Sunday afternoon.

The middle-aged woman, who was swimming between the patrol flags, could not touch the bottom against a strong current at Wainui Beach.

Lifeguards Zyanja Rudge and Charlotte McDiarmid jumped into action, using a rescue tube to take the swimmer safely back to shore.

“She had been swimming with her husband and was unable to get back to the beach,” Riversun Wainui lifeguarding director Belinda Slement said.

“Conditions were onshore with a solid 2m swell pushing into Wainui.

“There was a heavy shore break and strong feeder currents running along the beach.

“The woman was super-grateful for the help back to shore and was visibly tired,” Slement said.

The incident happened at about 2.45pm on what was Wainui’s final patrol day of the season.