Emergency services and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter seen at Hobsonville Marina responding to a medical event.
Video / NZ Herald
A kayaker’s morning paddle through the upper reaches of Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour ended tragically, after he suffered an apparent heart attack surrounded by friends.
Fellow paddlers have named Waitemata Canoe & Multisport Club member and father Simon McLarin as the person who died following a medicalevent earlier today.
In a post on the club’s Facebook, McLarin was described as a “revered figure in the paddling community and devoted family man”.
Emergency services were called to an area offshore from Hobsonville Marina around 8.35am, and despite a dramatic multi-agency rescue operation, he did not survive.
A friend out on the water with him when tragedy struck told the Herald that McLarin suffered a heart attack whilst paddling with around seven others during a training.
“I was with him on the water as part of the kayak training group, and I was the one who made the 111 call,” the friend said.
In an online tribute, another friend said McLarin would be sorely missed during their early morning training sessions.
Friends have named Waitemata Canoe & Multisport Club member and father Simon McLarin as the person who died following the medical event yesterday. Photo / Facebook
“He always said to me the water was his happy place, and if he had to go, he wanted it to be on the water,” the friend wrote.
The private launch had docked in the marina by 9.30am, with one of the Police Maritime Unit’s rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs) rafted up alongside it.
The police boat, Deodar, and Fire and Emergency NZ were also at the scene.
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