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The mother of a man who went missing while kayak fishing fears her son has drowned. She has had to break the news to his young children.
Samuel McAlister could light up the room with his presence and loved his family dearly, his heartbroken mum Haidee Ainsley told the Herald.
“He was just a beautiful boy with a really big heart. He lit up the room just being there and he loved to dance and sing; he loved his music,” she said.
“He loved to make people laugh.”
McAlister was a father to Rhythm, 7, Kahu, 4, and Amiyah, 1. He turned 25 the day before he went missing.
On Sunday the Waihī man went fishing on the rocks and then celebrated his birthday at home with family. The next day he went kayak fishing on the Firth of Thames with a close friend.
They got into trouble when the sea became rough and McAlister lost his paddle.
The friend returned to shore to get help and managed to find someone with a boat.
“Whether he got impatient and tried to swim ashore, we just don’t know,” Ainsley said.
“He would have been wet and cold and tired so we are not sure.”
McAlister remains missing despite a police search and rescue staff, Coastguard, LandSar, and several volunteer teams searching the Thames Coast from Tapu to Wilsons Bay using drones and helicopters.
On Tuesday morning his kayak and lifejacket were found washed up on the shore near Tapu, giving fleeting hope he had made it to land.
