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Police suspect a man has fallen into a scorching Rotorua hot pool but searchers are struggling to source camera equipment capable of going into the geothermal waters to prove it.
A person contacted police eight days ago concerned they had heard someone fall into a fenced-off hot pool in the Fenton Park area of Rotorua.
The hot pool feeds into the popular Puarenga Stream that flows through the Whakarewarewa and Fenton Park suburbs, to Ngāpuna and into Lake Rotorua.
Local iwi have confirmed the stream remains open and a rāhui will only be put in place if police confirm a body is found.
A man is suspected to have fallen into a Rotorua hot pool that feeds into the popular Puarenga Stream, pictured. Photo / Stephen Parker
Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Van Kempen said police were notified at about 5.30pm on Tuesday last week by someone who heard what they thought was a person falling into the hot pool.
He said the person had not been able to see anyone in the hot pool at the time but later decided to contact police.
The Puarenga Stream runs through Whakarewarewa, Fenton Park and out to Lake Rotorua. Photo / Google Maps
Police had contacted the family of a man they believed could have fallen in the pool and created a missing person file.
“Police are confident as to the identity of the person but we are still doing work around that.”
The incident was not believed to be suspicious. Police would not reveal the exact location of the hot pool for sensitivity and health and safety reasons.
The search struggle
Rotorua police search and rescue squad leader Senior Sergeant Graeme Hill said his team was working as quickly as it could to source equipment either in New Zealand or overseas. Contact had been made with an Australian company that could help.
Hill said search and rescue crews used underwater cameras frequently but this situation was different given the temperature and the geothermal nature of the area.
He said the surface temperature was 85C and 87C at 1m deep.
“It’s pretty much boiling water.”
He said advice from the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences was to tread carefully.
“Anything to do with geothermal and the health and safety issue becomes massive. GNS says any disturbance of anything we do could create geothermal activity elsewhere.”
Hill said the unusual aspects of the area made it difficult.
Hill said: “We are trying our best, if there is someone in there, to return them to their loved ones”.
Hill said it wasn’t the first time a person had fallen into a hot pool and in the past Fire and Emergency NZ had helped in recovery operations.
But he said in those situations, the body could be seen or the person was seen falling into the hot pool.
“At the moment we are trying to prove or disprove the information we have received.”
Local iwi on standby for rāhui
Te Pakira Marae kaumātua Ngarepo Eparaima said he was contacted by police and went to the area to perform a karakia.
“That’s for the purpose to clear anything that might be there and to allow police to do their job.”
Eparaima said the hot pool fed into Puarenga Stream but flowed away from Whakarewarewa Village and therefore wasn’t downstream from popular swimming spots or the penny divers in the village.
He said in general terms a rāhui (restriction of use for a certain period of time) was only placed if there was confirmation of a body in the water.
He said if confirmation was received, discussion would be held about where to place the rāhui given the stream flowed through Rotorua.
“If we know there is something there, then our pae (elders from Te Pakira) will get together.”
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.
