Yachties stranded after boat sinks

Six people spent more than an hour on rocks after their yacht sank near Kawau Island on Friday night.

The group from Auckland sent out a mayday call at 10.40pm when their 10.6m yacht foundered on Passage Reef between Kawau and Motuketekete Island.

Lion Foundation Rescue skipper Roger Farley said the Coastguard boat anchored about 100m from the rocks and crew used an inflatable dinghy to ferry the group to safety.