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A man who survived three nights and four days adrift at sea on Wellington's West Coast is being used as the face of a new campaign aimed at improving water safety.
Maritime New Zealand said from Sunday Rob Hewitt, the brother of former All Black Norm, would front television advertisements encouraging people to carry reliable communications gear on the water.
Mr Hewitt, a former Navy diver, said he was pleased to promote the campaign.
"It's also about thinking ahead and asking yourself if you find yourself in a situation like me, 'how can I contact my rescuers so they can come and find me?"'
What he had learnt from his ordeal in February last year was the power of communication, Mr Hewitt said.
"The simplest form of communication is first talking to someone and saying 'look, this is where I'm going and this is what I'm doing', but it's also taking the proper precautions and making sure you take the right communications equipment with you when you go out."
Maritime New Zealand recreational boating manager Jim Lott said failure to carry reliable communications equipment was the second highest cause of boating fatalities in New Zealand, behind not wearing a lifejacket.
Their research showed about 56 per cent of boating fatalities over the last seven years could have been prevented had the victims carried at least one reliable form of communication, he said. Several had had cell phones but had not put them in a waterproof bag.
"If you can't contact anyone, then no one can rescue you if you get into trouble."
Mr Lott said one of the most reliable forms of communication was a waterproof handheld VHF radio.
It cost about $200, which was "pretty cheap life insurance", he said.
" Failing that, even the simple act of popping your cellphone into a resealable plastic bag and tucking it into your pocket before you go out on the water could save your life."
- NZPA
