Search carried out after empty kayak found

A land, air and sea search in Napier has been called off after an empty kayak was found 20m offshore today.

Police were notified after the red "Dagger'' river kayak was discovered partially submerged about 2.30pm.

A fixed-wing plane had scoured the coastline, a water search by Coastguard was carried out and police door-knocked houses in the Bay View area.

The searches had not revealed any information about a missing kayaker, said Senior Sergeant Sarah Stewart.

"At this stage we cannot continue with the search'', she said.

The kayak was found 20m offshore from Bay View.

It was unknown at this stage if it was washed offshore or if a paddler had fallen out of the kayak, she said.

Senior Sergeant Stewart urged members of the public to contact police if they knew of a kayaker who had not returned home by an expected time or had any other relevant information.