Boat rescue at Bowentown

TECT Rescue was called to Bowentown at 3am.

UPDATED 8.49AM: Two fishermen who set out across the Bowentown Bar in the early hours of this morning lost their electrics in the rough conditions.

The fishermen and their vessel were escorted back across the bar by Coastguard boats from Waihi Beach and Tauranga.

'When they got outside they realised the conditions were a bit too big for them and they lost their navigation system,” says Coastguard Northern Region Communication Centre duty officer Tony Winyard.

'So Coastguard sent out a couple of rescue vessels one from Waihi and one from Tauranga and we just escorted them back into safe waters.

'I suspect maybe they either didn't check the weather forecast or thought that it was a little smaller than it was.”

Coastguard was called at 3am on VHF. The person making the call was able to give them a GPS position off their cell phone, says Tony.

EARLIER:

A vessel is being escorted back into Tauranga Harbour after getting into trouble crossing the Bowentown Bar this morning.

The skipper of the boat radioed for help around 3am saying he was disorientated and needed help.

Boats from Tauranga and Waihi Coastguards were launched to assist the vessel near Waihi.

It's understood the vessel is being shadowed until strong winds and big swells die down.

Once this happened, the plan was to escort the boat in Tauranga Harbour.

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4 comments

Idiots

Posted on 10-03-2017 08:55 | By peecee09

What fools going through one of NZ,s most dangerous entrances , and in the middle of the night! They should be made to pay the costs incurred by Coastguard and charged for endangering lives. What a pair of totally irresponsible idiots.


Well here's a thought!!

Posted on 10-03-2017 09:26 | By Jimmy

check the weather forecast!, unbelievable stupidity to put others lives at risk to save them, accidents will happen, waking up with a brain doesn't!, " dumb and dumber" would be considered Rhodes Scholars compared to these two.


Very dumb

Posted on 10-03-2017 18:24 | By no onehome

On a good day during daylight Bowentown is a risky crossing.Think about the volunteers that you put their lives at risk for your foolishness.Selfish,stupid,dumb so on & so on


APPS

Posted on 10-03-2017 19:44 | By no onehome

You know that the actions of two stupid people (boaties) that is an insult to the many tens of thousand of responsible boat owners could create new rules and regulations that are not necessary.Hope you were wearing life jackets but I doubt it unless you had consulted your APPS!!!


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