Northland town 'in mourning' after five die in charter boat tragedy

The waters where a charter boat tragedy claimed the lives of five people are treacherous in the wrong conditions, a long-time local fisherman says.

A search of about 500 square miles south of North Cape continued yesterday with three vessels, two helicopters and one fixed-wing aircraft looking for wreckage. The searchers found the body of the last missing man.

The Mangonui-based Enchanter, with two crew and eight fishermen on board, sank off Murimotu, an island just off North Cape, in Sunday night's ferocious storm.

Police divers examined the wreckage yesterday as part of their search for the missing person.

Police said the fifth body was retrieved yesterday afternoon by a vessel supporting the search operation. Search efforts, led by the Rescue Coordination Centre at Maritime NZ, have now concluded.

Police extended their deepest condolences to the man's family and friends.

Nicky Conrad, of Te Kao, said he said fished the waters around the Cape since he was a child accompanying his grandfather on trips out of Parengarenga Harbour.

''On a good day, like any other piece of ocean, it's a beautiful place to be — but it can be quite treacherous in the wrong conditions.''

The conditions on Sunday were ''horrible'', Conrad said.

Locals wouldn't dream of heading out when there was a continuous line of surf across the Parengarenga Harbour bar, as there was that day.

''Given the conditions and the wind you'd be foolish to be out there — or you've been caught out [by a change of conditions] and trapped.''

Conrad said shallow rock structures extended under the sea about a mile east from Murimotu, the vessel's last location.

When easterly winds blew up those structures lifted the swell and generated large waves.

''You have thousands of miles of sea, then all of a sudden it comes up against a brick wall.''

The Enchanter specialised in multi-day fishing charters to the Three Kings Islands. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Relying on weather forecasts could be tricky because they were often a day out in the very Far North. Boaties often had to go with their senses, he said.

While much of the coast around North Cape was exposed and dominated by cliffs, there were two places boats could seek shelter.

Depending on the wind, boats could head to Tom Bowling Bay, just west of the Cape, or sneak behind Murimotu to a small bay.

It wasn't comfortable but it was better than being out at sea.

''People think of the east coast as calm but when it's rough it's a place you don't want to be,'' Conrad said.

Meanwhile, Mangonui Harbour warden Steve Smith said the town was in mourning.

He said the Enchanter was one of the biggest charter fishing vessels in Mangonui, robust and well-balanced with a lot of centre-weight to keep it upright, and skipper Lance Goodhew was highly experienced.

''I'd have absolutely no hesitation in going out with him on a trip like up to Three Kings,'' Smith said.

The formal investigation was only starting but he suspected a freak accident such as a rogue wave taking off the flying bridge at the top of the cabin.

''You lose that and it destabilises the vessel pretty quickly. All sorts of things can happen.''

Goodhew, who was a personal friend, was out of hospital but ''shell-shocked''.

While the deceased fishermen had only been in Mangonui a few days they were considered part of the community.

The effect on the town was huge, Smith said.

''The town is like it's in mourning. We truly do feel it. It's bad enough to lose a boat, but lives with it, is beyond belief. Our heartfelt sorrow goes out to those involved.''

Police Search and Rescue staff at Te Pua, base for the search operation. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Penetaui Kleskovic, operations manager for Far North iwi Te Aupōuri, said tragedies had occurred before at Murimotu and the Three Kings, where the sinking of the Elingamite in 1902 claimed 45 lives.

If conditions were rough the area offered little shelter.

''When the water whips up there it's pretty scary.''

Kleskovic said the Enchanter activated its emergency locator beacon around 8pm on Sunday.

Its last contact with Far North Radio, a Mangonui-based maritime radio service, was at 10pm, when the vessel was about an hour off North Cape. The first survivors were winched from the water about 11.30pm.

Kleskovic also believed damage from a rogue wave caused the sinking.

Te Aupōuri kaumātua had declared a rāhui of at least two weeks' duration from Te Rerenga Wairua (Cape Reinga) around North Cape as far as Tohoraha (Mt Camel, at the entrance to Houhora Harbour).

The iwi asked people to avoid food gathering in the area out of respect for the deceased and their whānau.

''We have to be mindful of our commercial fishermen but this a very serious kaupapa where a number of people have died,'' Kleskovic said.

Ngāti Kuri earlier declared a one-week rāhui from Murimotu to Tohoraha.

The Enchanter takes on big seas and 40 knot winds at the Three Kings Islands in a video made by skipper Lance Goodhew in 2011. Photo / Supplied

The power of the sea off New Zealand's northern tip is illustrated by a 90-second video Goodhew posted on Facebook in 2011.

It shows the Enchanter ploughing through huge swells in 40 knot winds near the Three Kings Islands.

At one point a wave breaks over the top of the cabin, only water is visible from the window, and the person filming the scene is bowled over.