Missing man investigation development: Beach search near Esk River

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Police and excavators were at work in Eskdale yesterday amid the investigation into the disappearance of Gisborne man Joseph Ahuriri, 1News reported online yesterday.

“Police are making inquiries as part of an ongoing investigation into the disappearance of Joseph Ahuriri,” a police spokesperson told 1News.

At least five police cars were parked at the end of North Shore Road yesterday afternoon, a 1News reporter at the scene said.

Excavators could be seen combing through an area near the mouth to the Esk River.

A large section of beach had also been cordoned off.

Workers in high-visibility gear and police officers appeared to be digging up part of the beach, the 1News story said.

Mr Ahuriri, a 40-year-old father of eight, was attempting to travel from Napier to his home in Gisborne around the time of Cyclone Gabrielle last February.

He was last seen on February 14, fuelling his white Toyota Hilux at Waitomo Fuel Stop in Bay View, Napier. There have been no confirmed sightings of him since then.