Rescuer describes undertow's treachery

A man who helped to rescue children in trouble only metres offshore in treacherous seas off Napier has described how the undertow at the beach would suck anyone out.

About 3.50pm on Saturday, Shannon Barwood was walking along the beach behind the National Aquarium on the Marine Parade when he saw a 9-year-old girl being dragged out to sea.

A boy about the same age had gone out after her. Two older girls who were "a bit hysterical" were also about to go out but Mr Barwood said he and his partner told them to wait.

While his partner phoned the police he tried to grab the boy.

Mr Barwood is about 2m tall and describes himself as reasonably fit, but the waves were over his head and he could not reach the boy, who was only about 5m to 10m from the shore.

"I got dumped a couple of times. You just get slammed into the shingle," Mr Barwood said. "Then the little bit of water that's there is just constantly sucking you back."

Soon afterwards a group of teenagers arrived and one dived into a breaking wave, timing it right to reach the girl about 20m offshore.

The boy was washed back to shore several times but Mr Barwood became worried it might not be possible to save him. "It would only take one good [wave] to take him right out.

"It was just a matter of when you could try to grab him ...

"He was in the wash but then I would get sucked under and he would get pulled under as well," Mr Barwood said.

People just kept yelling at the boy to ride a wave in so they could grab him as he was dumped on the beach and before a second wave came to pull him back out.

Signs were up along the beach warning people of the dangers of swimming there, Mr Barwood said, but as he walked back along the beach after the incident he saw other children trying to paddle where the waves were breaking.

Constable Eden Sewell, who helped with the rescue, said the youth who reached the girl was 16 years old.

The sea at Napier was notorious for dangerous undertows and rips, he said.

The beach was closed yesterday, and signs were up to warn swimmers of the dangers.

Mr Sewell said the parents of the children were not at the beach at the time of the near-tragedy.

The youngsters were taken to hospital for observation.

- NZPA