A former Major League pitcher visits Greymouth to find out what happened on a rafting trip 17 years ago.

The search for two fishermen missing at Port Waikato enters its third day today. The police Eagle helicopter will search the area near the mouth of the river.

Little Hunter McGillivray, 2, suffered a near-drowning on Thursday and is now fighting for his life in hospital.

Those close to a drowning man who was pulled from Wellington Harbour last week say they are still mystified as to why their friend was in the water.

A teenage hero who helped to rescue a drowning man is devastated she will never get to meet the student she saved.

A 19-month-old girl has drowned in Dargaville.

A small dinghy used by a man who fell into the Whangarei Harbour and drowned has been discovered by police, tied to a buoy where the fisherman was last seen.

The burial service for two brothers who drowned at a popular surf beach north of Gisborne at the weekend will be held today.

Police have identified the body that was recovered from the Whanganui River yesterday as Jayden Tilby, 24.

Two young men who drowned at a popular surf beach north of Gisborne on Saturday were "really neat kids", their father says.

New signs should be placed around a popular swimming spot after a man drowned trying to save his son, a coroner says.

Two brothers who drowned at a popular surf beach north of Gisborne on Saturday have been named by police.

An Invercargill man who drowned while collecting shellfish off Ocean Beach in Bluff yesterday has been named by police.

A young man is feared drowned after he and a friend tried to cross the Waikato River in Hamilton last night.

Two young men suspected of drowning at a popular surf beach north of Gisborne yesterday were brothers.

The last moments of Johnny Faitaua's life - laughing and shirtless in the sunshine - were captured on film by his girlfriend Hannah Elise as the pair enjoyed a day at O'Neill Bay beach.

A man who died after a boat capsized off the Kapiti Coast north of Wellington on Saturday has been named by police.

Two teenage cousins tried everything in their power to rescue a woman who drowned at a Northland beach, with one getting caught in a rip himself.

A woman in her 50s has died in a suspected drowning incident in Northland today.

The grandmother of an 11-year-old boy who died after he got caught in a rip says the tragedy highlights the need for more children to be taught water skills.

An elderly man drowned while swimming at a beach on the Kapiti Coast last night.

The teenage girl who drowned while paddle boarding in Whangamata has been named by police.

Family and friends have farewelled a 16-year-old boy who was swept out to sea at Ninety Mile Beach on December 27, remembering him as their 'miracle boy'.

An 11-year-old boy who died after being caught in a rip at a Northland beach yesterday has been named.

A man who "sacrificed his own life" to save his two daughters and a 7-year-old niece from drowning is being hailed a hero by his whanau.

An intoxicated man who walked into the sea at a Christchurch beach fully clothed this morning is missing and presumed drowned.

Police have named three people who have died in water-related accidents so far this holiday season.

Family members of a missing teenager were keeping an emotional vigil on a Northland beach last night - the latest incident in a horror start to the holiday season in the water.