A surfer who suffered a critical spinal injury in Mangawhai was “very lucky” the local surf club was set-up for junior surf training, according to one of his rescuers.
Matthew Scott, 32, remains in a serious condition after the accident on Mangawhai Bar a week ago. One witness said he slammed head-first into the sand after another surfer got in the way.
Scott was rescued with the help of surfers in the water and the Mangawhai Heads Volunteer Lifeguard Service. They were able to get him to an ambulance and rescue helicopter - taking him to Middlemore Hospital within the hour.
Scott has since had surgery but his prognosis will only be known with time.
But one of his rescuers, volunteer lifeguard Isaac Pow, said the rescue could’ve been seriously delayed if the surf club had not already unlocked its fencing and containers for the junior surf programme.
The Mangawhai service has been operating out of temporary containers surrounded by security fencing since its clubhouse was damaged by a slip in February 2023.
While the clubhouse is insured, the land is too dangerous to access until the slip is secured. The slip is on Kaipara District Council land and a pro bono investigation by a surf club member found it would cost $1.9 million to fix.
Just a week before the accident, the surf club warned that out-of-hours rescues would be compromised by the temporary set-up, due to the time it takes to unlock the fencing and containers to access rescue equipment.
Pow said Scott’s rescue was out of patrol hours but the surf club equipment was fortunately already accessible due to junior surf training being on.
“This could’ve been catastrophic due to delays,” he said.
Scott and his family are part of the Mangawhai Heads Volunteer Lifeguard Service, with his father being a life member.
Pow said other surfers in the water were also former lifeguards and helped keep Scott stabilised until Pow was able to get to him in the club’s IRB.
The volunteer lifeguards who pitched in for the rescue had also just completed a two-day first aid refresher course the week prior, so they knew exactly what to do to protect Scott’s spine.
“He’s very lucky that everything happened the way it did,” Pow said.
“I’m pretty sure in the future, if it [the slip] is not solved, there will be something happen which is out of our control ... a person dies because we can’t get there quick enough to help.”
Another major issue with the temporary set-up is the lack of ambulance access, said executive member Tony Baker, who was also at the beach helping to run the junior surf training.
“I saw the ambulance pull up to the top carpark but, because of the gates, they couldn’t get through and had to go back to the boat ramp,” he said.
A similar incident also happened last year, when two people were suffering hypothermia after being caught in a rip and the ambulance stretchers had to be dragged down the footpath, Baker said.
Mangawhai is a fast-growing community and the beach is increasingly popular with surfers and swimmers - putting more strain on the club, he said.
“We are a pressure point. This is where the community comes for their recreation and they just assume that it’s going to be safe and someone will rescue them if it goes wrong.”
Baker, who regularly surfs with Scott, said he was heartbroken about the injury.
“I can speak for everyone around here, we’re absolutely devastated that this has happened.”
A Givealittle page has been set up to help support Scott in his road to recovery, raising more than $21,000 in the first 24 hours.
Service chair Jess Costello said the club decided five years ago that parents involved in junior surf training should be trained as lifeguards, in case such an incident like this happened when they were the only people at the beach.
The club training, including the recent first aid course, paid off when it came to rescuing one of their own, she said.
But Costello said it is now up to Kaipara District Council to fix its slip to ensure the future of the club and she wanted the $1.9m cost to be included in the council’s upcoming Long-Term Plan.
The council says its draft Long-Term Plan consultation document will be considered by councillors at the end of March and will be open for public consultation from April 4 to May 4.
An early draft included $600,000 for surf club beach access at Mangawhai Heads.
Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.