Christmas Eve tragedy: Rāhui in place after diver dies near Gisborne

Police were called to the bay at 7.25am. Photo / Google

A rāhui is in place at Hicks Bay after the body of a missing diver was found this afternoon.

Police were called to the bay at 7.25am after the diver failed to surface. At 3pm, the diver was found unresponsive and could not be revived.

Police say no further details are available until all necessary family notifications have taken place.

The trustees of Potaka Marae have put the rāhui in place from the boundary line of Potikirua and Midway Point.

No seafood is to be collected from the area until the rāhui is lifted.

Water Safety New Zealand figures show so far, drowning deaths were up on this time last year - 84, not including today’s tragedy, versus 83 at the same time last year.

Chief executive Daniel Gerrard said for many, fishing and diving was not just a pastime, but a cheap way to feed the family - and some simply can’t afford bad weather getting in the way.

“We’re hearing it anecdotally from so many places now that risks are being taken in some of these situations out of a need, rather than a want.”

The organisation’s research into deaths from kai gathering showed those who die while fishing from a boat were mostly older men.

- Additional reporting from RNZ