Kayaker rescued off the coast of Taranaki

Police contacted both the Coastguard and Taranaki Rescue Helicopter. Photo / File

A kayaker was winched to safety in Taranaki this morning after he capsized and could not get back in to shore.

Police were alerted to the incident, which took place about one kilometre offshore from Bell Block near New Plymouth, just before midday.

The 40-year-old man was wearing a life jacket but not a wetsuit and it was thought his kayak was sinking.

The waves and current were preventing him from returning to land.

Police contacted both the Coastguard and Taranaki Rescue Helicopter, which arrived at the scene and dropped a crew member into the water to rescue the kayaker.

Both were winched back into the helicopter and the kayak was later retrieved by a fishing vessel.

The helicopter was then met by an ambulance, which checked the health of the man.

Taranaki Search and Rescue is now urging people venturing out into the hills and sea this summer to make sure someone is fully aware of their plans, where they are going, and when they are due back.

Travelling with a companion is safer than going alone, it said, and people also need to ensure they are carrying the right equipment.

This includes wet suits when heading out to sea in very small boats and kayaks, and additional warm clothing and food if tramping.

"[Carrying] emergency locator beacons greatly increases the chances of emergency services getting to the person requiring assistance quickly, rather than search teams having to estimate where any injured person may be," Taranaki Search and Rescue said.

"These beacons work off satellites where cell-phones do not have anywhere near the coverage due to reception issues."

There is expected to be an influx of people heading out and enjoying the outdoors during the holiday season, and emergency services are encouraging people to check weather conditions before doing so.

Police said they want people to enjoy themselves, but also survive.

The man reportedly called emergency services himself after finding a hole in the bottom of his kayak and tipping out.

Taranaki Rescue Helicopter crewman Andy Cronin was the winch operator on board the chopper during the rescue.

Mr Cronin told the Herald his helicopter crew was alerted by police, who said a man was in the water off Bell Block clinging to his kayak.

"So we got one of our volunteer rescue swimmers to come in and got airborne from our base in behind Taranaki Base Hospital.

"[We] located him straight away and deployed a rescue swimmer to him and then winched the patient out, then the swimmer, to the aircraft and dropped them off at the beach."

Mr Cronin said the rescue went smoothly thanks to the man being prepared.

"The good news is that the dude was prepared. Accidents happen to everyone, but there's things you can do to reduce the impact of these.

"The bloke who was in the water had a life jacket on [and] was still holding on to his kayak, which is good because a kayak is a lot easier to spot in the water than a person."

He said this kind of preparation makes a difference to the outcomes of rescues.

"And this guy today is proof of that," Mr Cronin said.

He could not confirm if the man had called emergency services himself but said he did have a cellphone.

"He had his cellphone with him when we dropped him off, so I'm picking that maybe if he's raised the alarm, that might be how it was done."