Surf Life Saving NZ northern region general manager Zac Franich gives us his top tips and tricks for staying safe this summer in and around the water. Video / Carson Bluck
There are calls to permanently ban vehicles from Muriwai Beach after a person died when a ute rolled yesterday, crushing a teenage girl.
Rodney local board chairman Brent Bailey told the Herald vehicles on the beach are in direct conflict with beach-goers who want to use the beach for activities like kite surfing and sunbathing.
“As a Muriwai resident and someone who supports the decision to ban [vehicles], I have sympathy for the regional park staff who have to deal with the amount of traffic and congestion and competing uses.
“The immature behaviour by a small segment of the community has already caused tragedy - and I think it’s probably avoidable.”
Local resident Ed Donald said he’d been pushing for years to have better policing of vehicle access to the beach.
He said the current speed limit of 60km/h on the beach was ridiculous, and it should be dropped to 10km/h - and police officers should also be deployed to prosecute rule-breakers.
“We have been asking and asking for more policing on the beach, and they just say, ‘We don’t have the resources’.”
Donald said the death was “tragic” but feared further deaths could follow if action wasn’t taken.
“We still want to go surfing, we still want to go fishing, but all of a sudden we just have this ‘hoon’ mentality, and it’s just taking control of the beach.
“Imagine for a minute if all these kids were turning up at Omaha Beach or Kohimaramara Beach - how long would that last? Why is it okay for Muriwai, but not there?”
Emergency services on Muriwai Beach 21 January 2024 after a car rolled ejecting a passenger from the vehicle. I person has died and three are injured. Photo / Auckland Rescue Helicopter Trust
Images from the scene showed a red Toyota ute with a badly crumpled front bonnet and roof.
A witness to the incident’s aftermath, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Herald he saw a girl in the back of the vehicle while it was doing doughnuts hours before the fatal crash.
“We finished fishing and, on our way back, we came across [the accident scene], and a fireman told us a girl had been killed. We saw her body lying outside the ute just by the rear tyre there.
“One was taken to hospital, one was dead and the other was being taken by police.”
He said the incident was tragic and he felt for the families affected.
“Those utes, they just flip so quickly. They dig in and before you know it, you’re on your roof. These young ones - it’s one moment of stupidity, and now their families are trapped forever.”
Emergency services on Muriwai Beach on January 21 after a car rolled, ejecting a passenger from the vehicle.
Bailey said although it would be up to Auckland Council to ban the vehicles, it’s a change he would support.
“I think it’s about time to give the vehicles the swerve - it’s clear to me that the risk to the community is immense.”
He added that having cars and utes on the beach was an ecological issue as well as a safety one.
“We’re trying to keep vehicles off the ecological restoration part of the dunes - and of course, the dunes are the part [vehicle drivers] want to play on.”
The beach was closed to vehicles throughout summer in an attempt to restore the dunes.
Auckland Council decided in October last year to close the beach in an attempt to manage the impact of vehicles on the ecosystem, banning them from driving on the beach during the height of summer and other holidays such as Guy Fawkes weekend.
From late December to January 15 every year until 2026, the beach will be closed to vehicles.
“Unpermitted vehicle activity is having a major impact on some of our most threatened species and damaging the sand dunes,” said Auckland Council regional parks principal specialist Stephen Bell.
“We’ve already had reports of serious harm caused to wildlife in the area. People need to understand how fragile this environment is and be aware of how they impact on their surroundings, especially other visitors, shorebirds and animals on the beach.”
Emergency services including police, Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) and two rescue helicopters rushed to the accident scene on Auckland’s west coast about 2.30pm yesterday.
A spokesperson for the rescue service confirmed two helicopters responded to the scene of the accident where there were “multiple patients”. A male in his 20s was airlifted to Auckland City Hospital in a moderate condition.
Police said the Serious Crash Unit attended and investigations into the cause of the crash were under way.
A witness told the Herald a vehicle had been doing burnouts on the beach when the tragedy unfolded.
It was not known whether the young male driver had been injured.
According to New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi’s website, vehicles must travel no faster than 30km/h on beaches when pedestrians are present, or up to 60km/h if the beach is free of pedestrians.
An Auckland Council spokesperson said they were aware of the “tragic accident” on the beach but had no further information as they had not been briefed by emergency services.
Fenz shift manager Paul Radden confirmed four appliances attended the accident site, with crews from Muriwai, Shelly Beach, Whenuapai and Helensville. They were called to the scene at 2.38pm and referred the Herald to police as the lead agency.
A spokesperson for Hato Hone St John ambulance service said they were notified of the incident but their assistance was not needed.
A person in Muriwai told the Herald he could see a rescue helicopter responding, along with “many police and fire [responders] heading up Muriwai Beach”.
