NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Naval officer in dramatic high seas rescue

Patrice Dougan
By Patrice Dougan
Assistant Chief of Staff·APNZ·
9 Jul, 2014 12:57 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The rescued yachties aboard the HMNZS Otago. Left, their yacht bobs on the water as the Navy ship approaches. Photo / NZ Navy, NZ Herald

The rescued yachties aboard the HMNZS Otago. Left, their yacht bobs on the water as the Navy ship approaches. Photo / NZ Navy, NZ Herald

Tears came to Navy Lieutenant Simon Wasley's eyes today when he was asked how he felt about being called a hero after diving into treacherous seas to rescue three people from a stricken yacht.

"It makes me fairly uncomfortable," he said.

But the three people he saved felt differently, saying they would certainly call him a hero - "just not to his face".

Read more: Incredible rescue from raging river

Experienced sailors Ben Costello, Rebekka Hielkema and Andrew Cooke were plucked out of the water after Lieutenant Wasley dived in with a rescue line.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The trio were individually winched to safety on board the Royal New Zealand Navy patrol vessel HMNZS Otago.

They had been transferring the 11-metre yacht Django II from Fiji to New Zealand when the rudder was broken by a rogue wave in high seas around 170 nautical miles north of North Cape.

The crew were ready to abandon ship.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The Royal New Zealand Navy patrol vessel HMNZS Otago was one of two boats asked to assist in the rescue.

It and the log carrier Laura Bulker reached Django II about 5.30pm.

MNZ spokesman Neville Blakemore told Radio New Zealand there were "extremely high seas", with waves reaching 5m.

It was very difficult for the yacht to come alongside the Otago, he said.

Discover more

New Zealand

'That's someone's grandma in there'

08 Jul 01:53 AM
New Zealand

Pride of NZ: Raging river An incredible rescue

08 Jul 05:30 PM
New Zealand

Three rescued after abandoning yacht

08 Jul 08:21 AM

"So they determined that the best bet was to get the people to get into their liferaft, which was connected by a rope to the warship and the crew of the warship then pulled them over to the warship.

"Just as they got there the first time, due to the sea conditions the warship rolled violently and the crew thought that they were going to get crushed by the warship so they cut the rope and a sailor dived in to attach another rope - swam to the life raft and reconnected it all."

It was "quite risky", but the rescuer would have been a highly trained ship diver, Mr Blakemore said.

Lieutenant Wasley was "the best looking man I've seen for a while", said Ms Hielkema, laughing as she described seeing him reach their liferaft last night.

"It was fantastic to see the face of someone who looked very capable of saving us," she said.

Despite the trio being very well prepared, they were glad to be rescued when the Otago arrived around two hours earlier than expected.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

They had grab bags with all their essentials - including Milo bars and lollies - and were wearing wet-weather gear and lifejackets. They passed their time waiting to be rescued by briefing each other on what they should do in different types of rescue situations, she said.

The plan was to stay in the yacht, which was now letting in water, for as long as they could, before being advised by the Navy to move into their liferaft.

"It's a tiny inflatable bouncy castle in 60 knots of breeze, so it's not really an ideal situation," said Ms Hielkema.

"We were very reluctant to get into the liferaft."

The first attempt to get draw them in on a rescue line failed, when, with the Navy vessel lurching in four-metre swells, they felt it too dangerous to hold on. The decision to send a diver was then made.

As a former Navy diver, Lieutenant Wasley was the most experienced swimmer on board, volunteering to take on the daunting task.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He admitted it was a scary situation.

"Anyone who wouldn't be scared in that situation doesn't know the risks," he said.

The trio were brought into Auckland this morning, where they were reunited with their families at Devonport Naval Base.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

'It wasn't a free choice': Nurse with vaccine injury felt 'betrayed'

11 Jul 02:00 AM
New Zealand

Theatre stalwart's triumphant return after PTSD recovery

11 Jul 02:00 AM
live
New Zealand

'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes

11 Jul 01:53 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Theatre stalwart's triumphant return after PTSD recovery

Theatre stalwart's triumphant return after PTSD recovery

11 Jul 02:00 AM

Di Leach is returning to theatre seven years after she became unwell.

'It wasn't a free choice': Nurse with vaccine injury felt 'betrayed'

'It wasn't a free choice': Nurse with vaccine injury felt 'betrayed'

11 Jul 02:00 AM
'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes
live

'Threat to life': Tasman District upgraded to red warning; floodwater enters homes

11 Jul 01:53 AM
Tauranga power cuts cause traffic chaos

Tauranga power cuts cause traffic chaos

11 Jul 01:33 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP