Student injured in kayaking accident

A 14-year-old Tauranga Girls High School student, competing in the New Zealand Secondary School Kayaking Slalom, was injured while kayaking on the Tongariro River yesterday afternoon.

The girl was negotiating a section of the river when the water carried her close to the bank where she lost her balance and rolled banging her head.

Supporters helped her from the river and she was treated by paramedics for possible spinal injuries and flown by the Taupo-based Lion Foundation rescue helicopter to Rotorua Hospital.

- NZPA