Police have confirmed that one person is dead after a tourist jetboat crashed in Queenstown, spilling all on board into the swollen Shotover River.
The Kawarau Jet, carrying about 22 people, crashed about 2.45pm at the mouth of the river.
A helicopter was used to search for the
female Chinese tourist who died in the accident. Police say the woman died at the scene, and that no more details would be released until next of kin have been informed.
It is understood that the woman was trapped beneath the overturned craft.
Maritime New Zealand spokesman Ross Henderson says investigators are looking into what transpired.
Police said 20 people were treated on the shore near where the accident happened at the Shotover and Kawarau River delta.
Kawarau Jet spokesman Andrew Brinsley said he was at an operations base in Queenstown gathering information on the accident.
A spokeswoman for the company said five people were taken to hospital for treatment and the company was trying to account for everybody else on board.
This meant going through logs from the tour group which was made more difficult by the language barrier.
She said the company had "absolutely no idea" what went wrong.
The twin engine boat was carrying a Chinese tour group and was on a standard daily trip when it flipped over.
More information is expected shortly.
- NZ HERALD STAFF / NZPA
