Search for fishers focuses on coastline

The Mi Jay left Nelson on November 22

The search for a Nelson fishing boat and its three crew is focusing on coastline where the men might have washed up if they abandoned the vessel.

Two helicopters yesterday scoured a 570km length of coastline for the Mi Jay, which left Nelson on November 22 and has not been heard from since.

It is believed the crew had never been out on the vessel before.

Authorities have confirmed that the skipper of the 13m Mi Jay is Nelson fisherman Paul Rees, 52.

The other men, both also in their 50s and from Nelson, have not been publicly named but it is understood that one is Cedric Mathews.

An air search on Tuesday covered 90,000sq km and the Rescue Co-Ordination Centre has made frequent broadcasts to other sea vessels.

There have been no reported sightings of or contact with the Mi Jay.

The search yesterday focused on the shoreline "where the men may have ended up if they had needed to evacuate Mi Jay in their lifeboat", a rescue centre spokesman said.

The centre had analysed the possible drift patterns and found they would have drifted west to northwest.

Mission controller Dave Wilson said if the crew ended up on shore they might be in a remote location or hurt.

"The other scenario we've been investigating is whether they went fishing in a different location.

"So we've also been searching around New Zealand through ports, and broadcasting messages out to sea," Mr Wilson said.

"However, this does remain an unlikely possibility as our investigation so far clearly points to them intending to fish in the Mernoo Bank area, which is about 210km east of Canterbury."

One helicopter searched from Castlepoint down to near Wellington, and another searched the South Island from Cape Campbell to the entrance to the Rangitata River, just north of Timaru.

Moira Petersen, a good friend of Mr Mathews, said that all three on board the Mi Jay were experienced fishermen.

It was Mr Mathews' first trip on the vessel and she believed it might also have been the first time the other two men had gone fishing on it.

Ms Petersen said that although small, the Mi Jay was a strong steel-hulled boat.

"I don't think it would be something that would be sunk easily," she said.

"Something would have had to hit it, or they would have had to hit something."

Their disappearance has prompted a call for regular contact from fishing boats to be mandatory so authorities know roughly where to search for them if they have to.

Mi Jay owner Warwick Loader, director of Crusader Fisheries, lost his other fishing boat, Ma Marie, in January when it sank off the West Coast while fishing for tuna.

- NZPA, STAFF REPORTER