Man in critical condition after boat hits rocks at high speed in Coromandel

A man is in a critical condition after a boating accident in the Coromandel.

The victim was one of four people in a 6.5m aluminium boat that struck rocks at high speed at Cooks Beach last night, Whitianga deputy harbourmaster Calvin Hicks told Fairfax.

"It looks like the boat has hit the reef at high speed, forcing the boat out of the water," Hicks said.

Brett Osborne heard helicopters attending the scene in the wake of the accident.

"I heard choppers working until about 3 in the morning," he said.

"I've never seen that down here before . . . they must've been really hammering it to get up on those rocks."

Witnesses assisted in the aftermath of the crash.

"There happened to be an off-duty police officer who was at Cooks Beach and he and a friend went out on a rubber ducky and rescued three people from the boat."

Hicks told Fairfax the fourth person on the boat looked to be badly injured so the pair decided to wait for a rescue helicopter to arrive.

"I'm not sure how far out the crash happened but I'm heading down there soon to see."

A Waikato Hospital spokesperson confirmed one man suffered critical injuries in the crash.