Taupo deaths hit neighbour

A friend of one of the men killed in a boating accident on Lake Taupo says he has lost "the greatest neighbour I ever had".

Albany resident Peter Henley lived next door to Ben Pervan, who died early on Wednesday after the 3m dinghy he was in with his brother Shamie and father Stephen was swamped.

The family members had gone fishing in the Tongariro Delta and were on their way back to Tokaanu about midnight when they ran into trouble.

They clung to a chillybin for four hours before 27-year-old Shamie decided to swim to shore to try to raise the alarm.

He made it and was found by a passing boatie about 9am but his brother and father were found dead soon after.

Mr Henley said he would miss his friend, whom he would often stop and chat with. He said the 28-year-old had worked as a furniture upholsterer in Auckland but spent more time in his garage working on cars.

Ben's passion for rotary engines had landed him a few noise warning notices. "He was a bit of a boy-racer but I never saw him racing around the streets."

Ben "was a darn good bloke. He was so industrious and hard-working and it's hard to believe he's gone".

Mr Henley said father Stephen, 55, was a "bit of a man of leisure" who had done well in real estate.

"I only met him a couple of times but he was a good bloke, a real regular guy who was pretty outgoing."

Acting Senior Sergeant Neale Saunders of Turangi said a search for the dinghy would likely start early next week. A dive team would try to find out what caused it to sink.