Afternoon boat trip turned to near disaster

Neihana-James Tawera and Joshua Johnson are eager to get back on the water but next time they will be better prepared. Photo / The Daily Post

Two Turangi men have a newfound respect for the work of the emergency services after they were forced to swim for their lives when their boat sank on Lake Taupo.

Neihana-James Tawera, 21 and Joshua Johnson also 21 had no idea their casual afternoon cruise on the lake last week would become a life and death struggle.

On Tuesday afternoon last week the pair decided to take Neihana's stepfather's 4m aluminium dinghy for a "cruise" on the lake.

They had food and planned to be back well before dark, but a change in the weather and a lack of boating essentials including life jackets, flares and a radio, quickly saw their cruise turn into an ordeal.

Making their way home towards the Tokaanu boat ramp where they had launched earlier, the men took it turns to drive the boat.

The weather was quickly deteriorating and water was making its way into the boat.

Neihana said that as as they were getting ready to change positions, he slowed too fast and the wake of the boat poured into the stern before the bow lifted and the boat flipped on its side, throwing both men into the chilly water.

Fully dressed in fleece pants, sweatshirts, jackets and with backpacks on their backs, the pair clung to the dinghy.

"We tried to flip the boat a couple of times, but we couldn't get the water out. It just felt like the more we tried to flip it, the more energy we wasted," Neihana said.

Growing increasingly cold and with darkness setting in, it was about 6pm when the pair decided to try and swim towards the shore they could see in the distance.

"I don't know if we were delusional or not, but we decided to swim towards the shore. It looked close enough, but we were later told we were about 3km from land," Neihana said.

They began fearing the worst.

"There were stages where he had a little cry and then I had a little cry," said Josh, who thought the pair were "stuffed".

As Josh grew tired, Neihana swam behind him and tried to pull him towards the shore.

Josh's father, concerned that the two were not home yet, phoned the police and a rescue operation was launched.

In the water the pair were freezing and exhausted and then a roar overhead gave them a glimmer of hope.

The pair could see a chopper hovering above the abandoned dinghy which was floating just 200m from where they were treading water.

Pulled to safety, the pair were flown to Taupo Hospital for observation.

Neihana was transferred onto Rotorua and released the next day.

While the rescue was a bit hazy, both men said they were grateful for the work of St John, Police, Coastguard and the rescue helicopter crew and their skill.

"Those guys do an awesome job. It's a life-saving service. I don't think we would have got out of it without them," Neihana said.

While the ordeal is still fresh in their minds, neither have been put off boating and say they are keen to get back out on the lake, but this time will ensure they have all the essentials, including life jackets and a radio.

"It hasn't put me off. It's a hard lesson to learn and we both learnt the hard way. You've got to be prepared heading out on the water," said Neihana.

As for the boat, it's still going but is now for sale.

Neihana said his mother was looking to donate the proceeds to the community's emergency services crews.