Surfer battles rough seas to save teen girls

A surfer is being praised for going to the rescue of two teenage girls swept out in rough seas yesterday.

Te Arahori Potaka-Osborne and Mikayla Scott-McKenzie, both 14, were in an inflatable dinghy at the beach at Puketa, south of Kaikoura, about 10.30am when they were caught out by the current.

"They were just mucking around in the little boat on the shore, and then they just got sucked out really quick," said Te Arahori's mother, Dianne Potaka.

"They were out in the boat for a while ... They ended up getting tipped out."

The pair were swallowing water, but lifejackets kept them afloat as they waited for help to reach them.

Ms Potaka said a friend of hers was trying to get out to the girls "but just kept getting pushed back in" because the waves were so big.

The alarm was raised at the local motor camp, and a surfer - known to Ms Potaka as Greg - who overheard what was happening grabbed his board and went to help.

He got through the breaking waves and reached Te Arahori, bringing her back to the beach.

The sea was so rough his surfboard broke during the rescue. The coastguard and a local helicopter were called into action, but by this time other locals had gathered to assist in getting Mikayla back to shore as well.

Ms Potaka said she was able to say only a quick thank-you to the surfer before attending to the girls, who were cold and tired but otherwise unhurt.

"I'm very grateful and thankful."

The rescue was the second of the day in the Kaikoura region, after an ill-equipped pair were saved when their boat overturned off the coast of Clarence, north of Kaikoura.

Constable Andy Watson, of the Kaikoura police, said a 59-year-old man and an 11-year-old boy also ended up in the water, about 6.30am, when the 4m craft they were in overturned.

The pair managed to get on to the boat's hull and by 8am had attracted the attention of people onshore by waving a paddle. Another vessel picked them up.

"[They were] very fortunate in the circumstances considering that there was no safety equipment on board. There was no lifejackets, wetsuits or radio," Mr Watson said.

"And they were fortunate to be beyond the breakers at the time the sea was breaking fairly hard upon the coast at that stage. Had they been in the breakers, it could have been a far different outcome for them."