Yacht sinks 5m to bottom of Napier's Meeanee Quay

A boat sank the night before it was due to be removed from its berth at Meeanee Quay, Napier, on Thursday. Photo / Paul Taylor

A 30-foot yacht has sunk the night before it was due to be removed from its berth at Meeanee Quay on Thursday.

Martin Moore, Hawke's Bay Regional Council regional harbourmaster, said the boat had been deemed unsafe and was due to be removed.

"We wanted it out of the water, it was deemed to be unseaworthy."

Something caused the boat to completely sink in the marina the night before that could happen.

"It was scheduled to be lifted out this afternoon anyway and unfortunately circumstances have overtaken it."

Moore said they had not yet determined a cause for why the boat sank and would not be able to do so until it was completely out of the water.

He said the recovery "went like clockwork" and the local dive team had done good work.

A local dive team and travel lift helped pull the boat out of the water on Thursday afternoon. Photo / Paul Taylor

Divers from local professional dive company Dive Hard, were called about 9am and spent six hours salvaging the vessel.

Company owner Tim McKenzie said four of this divers, including himself, attended.

"When we got there it was already on the bottom of the seabed," McKenzie said, which he estimated was about 5m deep.

"We have liftbags which basically we fill up with air which gives vessels buoyancy. We then got underneath it with travel lifts, and pumped the water out of it."

He said he didn't catch the name of the stricken yacht, and said the cause was uncertain, and that it was "due to be scrapped anyway".

"It could just be old age, it wasn't looked after, there was lots of mussel growth under it which really adds to the weight."

Dive Hard has been nominated for the local Hawke's Bay Business Awards emerging business category.