Dummy victims go missing

A marine exercise that went wrong has left Nelson search and rescue groups a little red-faced after they failed to find their "missing" dummies.

Sergeant Mike Fitzsimons, of Stoke police search and rescue, said police wanted to hear from anyone who had found the two dummies, after they were unable to be located during an exercise on Saturday by the coastguard, coastal air patrol and land search and rescue teams.

One of the dummies, dressed in a black wetsuit and orange lifejacket, was tied to an orange and white river kayak and placed off Pepin Island at 4pm on Friday.

Another dummy in a wetsuit was also not located.

Mr Fitzsimons said weather conditions on Friday had not been the best, and the dummies may have floated outside the search zone by the time the exercise began at 10am on Saturday.

The groups were testing new communications systems, which worked very well, even though they did not have the desired result on the day, Mr Fitzsimons said.

- NZPA