Man rescued near Mount Tongariro after vehicle gets stuck

The man set off his personal locating beacon which alerted the Rescue Coordination Centre to his plight. Photo / Supplied

A man was rescued from a forest near Mount Tongariro yesterday after his vehicle got stuck while he was out exploring.

The man set off his personal locating beacon which alerted the Rescue Coordination Centre to his plight. RCC staff were able to gather information about the registered beacon owner from nominated contact person for that particular beacon.

The Greenlea Rescue Helicopter crew were then dispatched just on dusk. They had an approximate GPS position and managed to locate the man after a short search just before darkness fell.

He was in his 4WD on a rugged 4wd track.

"It appears the man had been exploring the area in a 4wd, when he became stuck. Despite extensive efforts he was unable to get his vehicle free," a Greenlea spokesman said.

"The man was flown from his very remote location and dropped near his home in Turangi on the helicopter's return flight to Taupo."

One of the chopper crew was a Land Search and Rescue volunteer. During the flight he arranged to pick the man up this morning in his own 4wd and take him back into the "sticks" to retrieve his stuck vehicle.

"What a great Kiwi bloke," the spokesman said.