Napier fisherman found dead

Photo / file

The body of a crewman working on a commercial fishing vessel was recovered off the coast of Napier today.

Emergency services were alerted at 3.45am by the skipper of the boat, who reported one of his crew had fallen overboard, a police spokeswoman said.

The boat was about one nautical mile off the Port of Napier when the incident happened.

A search was immediately launched, involving police, Coastguard, Search and Rescue and a rescue helicopter.

The man's body was found by the Coastguard air patrol about 8.30am about two nautical miles from where he entered the water, the spokeswoman said.

Police were today interviewing everyone who was on the boat at the time.

It was not known at this stage how the man came to fall overboard, or if he was wearing a life jacket, the spokeswoman said.

The dead man's name would not be released until all family had been notified.