TOP STORY: Teen swam with his workmate tied to back in fishing tragedy

DOUG LAING
A teenager swam for several hours with a fellow fisherman tied to his back before his elder companion gave up, asking for his love to be passed on to his family as he slipped away off the Hawke's Bay coast early yesterday.
Waiariki Taoho, of Flaxmere, survived to tell the heart-breaking story to the drowned man's family yesterday.
He was resting at home last night, while fellow rescued fisherman, Gilbert "Skippy" Kemp, aged in his mid-40s, was recovering in Hawke's Bay Hospital, Hastings.
But two other men, Pana Keefe and Chris Pardoe, also in their mid-to-late 40s, died in the tragedy. Their families were last night gathered in a chapel to remember the Napier men, whose bodies were recovered from the sea off Awatoto.
All four were workmates at Pandora firm Fresha Meats NZ Ltd, historically known as the Napier Abattoirs, and had put to sea from the Hawke's Bay Sports Fishing Club's ramp at the entrance to the Napier inner harbour on Thursday afternoon.
Mr Taoho told family the 4.7m aluminium boat, fitted with pontoons, took on water as a wave came over the back while Mr Keefe was diving for mussels off Pania Reef, less than two hours after they headed out, planning to be back by nightfall.
Mr Keefe, who knew most about the boat, was unable to get the craft back up.
The weight of water tossed the others overboard and the boat started sinking.
The four hoped they had been seen by other fishing boats, but after seeing no sign of rescue, Mr Keefe and Mr Taoho started swimming for help.
They could see the lights on the coast for much of the night, but the evidence when they were found yesterday showed they were being swept parallel to the coastline.
Mr Taoho told family that when Mr Keefe apparently stopped being able to see, Mr Taoho went back and tied him to his back, and they stayed tied together until after daybreak when Mr Keefe told the younger man to cut him free, and gave him messages to pass on to his family.
"Pana told him to tell the whole family he loved them," a close friend said. "Pana gave up."
Police were not told of the men's failure to return home until about 6am yesterday, said search controller Senior Sergeant Mike Wright, and the Hawke's Bay Volunteer Coastguard was called in.
A light aircraft and the coastguard's Niyad rescue craft and at least two other boats were searching when the first man was found about 10am, by the crew of another boat which was travelling up the coast and had been alerted to look-out for the men.
When found, the men had been in the water about 17 hours, and Mr Kemp was brought-ashore beside the fishing club about 11.40am and carried to an ambulance to be rushed to Hawke's Bay Regional Hospital where for much of the day he was under intensive care suffering from hypothermia.
Mr Taoho was brought ashore at the Port of Napier and was also taken to hospital and treated for shock, before being discharged.
He told family all of the men were wearing lifejackets when the mishap happened, apart from Mr Keefe who had a diving suit and flippers and a sack of mussels.
Mr Wright said the men also had a radio and cellphones, and police had no concerns about the level of the men's care and safety.
He said that if there was a message to be learned, it was in the need for people at sea to keep others informed of their plans.
Police and other searchers would have been better placed had they known earlier.
Among those waiting patiently for news of the men yesterday was Port of Napier employee Bruce Fraser, who was himself rescued in a shoreline fishing tragedy in which another man died at Awatoto in August, 2001.