Tragedy avoided after overloaded dinghy rescued

The men were checked over by St John Ambulance after the incident. Photo / File

Five people were rescued from a Northland harbour last night after the engine of their overloaded dinghy failed, and they began drifting towards rocks.

With only three lifejackets on board, police said the incident could have ended in tragedy.

The group of three men and two women were in a 3.6m dinghy in Whangarei Harbour when the engine failed around 7pm.

They had gone out from Urquharts Bay and were fishing around the channel between the gun emplacement and Busby Head. But got into difficulty when the engine failed and they began to drift towards rocks.

One of those on board jumped into the water and attempting to hold the dinghy off the rocks while emergency services were alerted, police said.

Police Search and Rescue, Whangarei Coastguard and the Marsden Point Oil Refinery emergency services boat were all called out.

The group was found on shore at rocks underneath the gun emplacement.

One person was suffering from hypothermia and another had foot lacerations, police said.

St John Ambulance and the Whangarei Heads Volunteer Fire Brigade were also called into assist.

All five managed to walk back to the end of the road at Urquharts Bay for a medical check by ambulance staff.

They were given the all clear, but head of Northland Police Search and Rescue, Senior Sergeant Cliff Metcalfe, said things could have ended in disaster.

"Not only were there five adults in a 3.6m dinghy, which was overloaded, but there were only three lifejackets between them," he said.

"When their engine failed they got into some serious trouble and were blown, thankfully, towards the shore. Had this happened outside the harbour I'd hate to think what would have been the likely outcome."

With the current cold snap, the air and water temperature would have meant anyone who was in the sea would have struggled to stay alive for any length of time, Mr Metcalfe said.

"Even when they managed to get ashore the risk of hypothermia was still very real due to wet clothes and cold air temperature."

The incident was a reminder that people need to be well prepared when they go boating, he said, urging people to bring lifejackets for everyone on board, and that the engine should be in good working order.