KEY POINTS:
A Christmas Eve beach outing ended in an emergency dash to hospital for an Auckland teenager after he slipped on rocks and fell down Muriwai's popular blowhole.
The teen is believed to have been walking around the rocks about 3pm when he slipped and fell about 6m down the blowhole, landing on the hardpacked sand below.
Amateur photographer Bryn Nealie was taking photos of the gannets at the west coast beach when he heard a "sickening thud" followed by a lot of screaming.
He was about 50m away at the time so rushed to see what had happened and if he could help.
He arrived to find a boy, believed to be about 17, lying on the sand at the base of the blowhole, which at high tide is normally full of water that shoots into the air.
"He was obviously in pain because he was having a bit of a scream."
Mr Nealie said the boy, who was assisted by several passersby, fell unconscious at one stage.
Guided by staff from the St John ambulance communication centre, people kept the teenager warm and still and kept his airways open until help arrived. The Auckland Westpac rescue helicopter later winched him out of the blowhole.
Crewman Tinny Cammell said the teen suffered minor injuries and was taken to Auckland City Hospital.
* Later in the day, the Westpac helicopter rescued a woman from Goldies Bush in the Waitakere Ranges. She had been walking with her husband but became dehydrated.
Her husband raised the alarm and she was flown to Auckland City Hospital for observation.
* A man had to be rescued by a Fire Service boat after he fell from a walking track on to rocks at high tide in Northland yesterday.
Inspector Ian Brooker of the police northern communications centre said the man and a friend parked at the Rangikapiti Pa carpark, a lookout site near Mangonui Harbour, and went for a stroll.
"He then either fell or tried to climb down a bank to the water and hurt his leg and couldn't walk back up." The friend ran to the carpark for help.
