Hawke's Bay storm: Men floating down flooded river on a mattress 'reckless and stupid'

The Tutaekuri River, from the Guppy Rd reserve near Taradale on Thursday, a few hours before two men launched on the river on an inflatable mattress, in the dark. Photo / Paul Taylor

Two men have been rebuked by police after trying to ride out the storm floating down the flooded Tutaekuri River near Napier – on an inflatable mattress, in darkness.

Police who intervened about 7.30pm on Thursday said the adventurers planned to float down the swollen river from Taradale to meet friends near Clive.

Police intercepted the "lilo" near the Brookfields Bridge, between Meeanee and Pakowhai and the men were retrieved from the water.

Senior Sergeant Kevin Stewart said: "Their actions were both reckless and stupid. Not only did they risk their own lives, they risked the lives of emergency services who were called to the river.

"Knowing what the weather conditions have been like here on the East Coast, I'm at a loss as to understand why someone would do this.

"It's incredibly fortunate they are okay. If they'd fallen off, I am sure we'd have been looking for bodies."

It was not clear if police were considering the possibility of any charges related to what two men were doing together on one mattress in the dark.

It was the second incident of storm adventurism in which emergency services in Napier had intervened in just 22 hours.

On Wednesday evening a kayaker was rescued from the sea about 500m off Napier's Marine Parade apparently planning to paddle through a rising 2m swell around the Port of Napier to Ahuriri, also in failing light.

Driftwood washed up on the banks of the swollen Wairoa River after heavy rains lashed the district. Photo / Neil Reid

Photo / Neil Reid