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The family of a six-year-old boy who drowned on Boxing Day have asked that his name not be released. The boy is one of four people to have drowned since Christmas Day.
Ashley Atofa Patai-Vaisigano, 15, of Napier died on Thursday while trying to help his dog out of the Waikato River.
Richard Tautolo, 36, a pastor at the Hope Church in Porirua drowned on Christmas Day after being swept down the Waiwhakaiho River in Taranaki.
Also on Boxing Day, Anthony Kasupene, 52, drowned at Tolaga Bay north of Gisborne when his boat his a rock 30m from shore.
The Bay of Plenty Times reported that the family of the six-year-old twin Katikati boy who died after plunging over a ledge into a river at an Athenree camping ground did not want police to release his name.
The boy was riding his BMX bike down a gravel path while holding his Star Wars lightsaber and is believed to have lost control before he and his bike flipped down a small bank into the Waiau River.
After hitting his head on a rock, the boy was found lying face-down in knee deep water with head injuries by his twin brother, who alerted their mother.
Campers and the boy's mother tried unsuccessfully to resuscitate him just metres away from the family's campsite.
Results of a post-mortem examination conducted in Tauranga are expected to be available on Monday.
A total of 91 people drowned in 2006 but this year's toll so far is 104. The rolling annual average of the past decade is 126 deaths.
- NZPA
