Police say the 18-year-old man swept out to sea on Northland's west coast on Saturday was Patea Douglas Tane-Hohaia.

Police will continue the search for the body of a man who was swept out to sea with two other men in treacherous surf in Northland yesterday.

A young fisherman was rescued from treacherous surf by relatives yesterday, but his brother and brother-in-law died in one of the worst drowning tragedies of the summer.

A haunting wail echoed across the Whakatane River as a grieving relative watched police bringing 13-year-old Lance Tikitere Fitzgerald's lifeless body to the surface.

Less than a week after injuring her shoulder taking down a man with a sawn-off shotgun, an off-duty policewoman dived into a river to save a girl from drowning.

A woman who died at a public pool in Wellington this morning has been identified as 49-year-old Motuiliu Groom.

Lifeguards and swimmers tried desperately to revive a woman who died after aqua-jogging at a public pool in Wellington this morning.

The wife of a man who died while checking his crayfish pots on Tuesday says her husband loved nothing more than his garden and fishing.

More details are emerging of a father's desperate attempts to save his young daughter before both died in a Rotorua lake yesterday.

An autistic boy who went missing yesterday has been found drowned in a swimming pool near his Feilding home.

A search has resumed for a New Zealand man who is feared drowned after he jumped into rough seas to save a friend off a beach near Melbourne.

A man and his nephew who drowned while trying to save a little girl were preparing for a big week of celebrations, including the young victim's eighth birthday.

A 7-year-old boy and his 22-year-old uncle who drowned in northern Hawke's Bay yesterday have been named by police.

A 7-year-old boy and his 22-year-old uncle drowned when they went to rescue a young relative who was swept into the sea on the East Coast this afternoon.

This summer, water safety messages will be seen on 600,000 tray mats in KFC restaurants around the country.

A dangerous Coromandel beach is proving so popular with tourists it is feared lives will be lost unless it is patrolled for six months each year.

A push to make wearing lifejackets compulsory on the Waitemata Harbour to save lives is expected to be strongly opposed by boaties.

Mystery continues to surround the death of a young man whose body was found on Ninety Mile Beach in 2011, an inquest heard today.

A man has drowned after being swept away while fishing in Raglan overnight.

A father has been convicted and discharged for failing to look after his daughter in dangerous surf - after a teenage hero drowned trying to save her.

Victor Hemi Pikari, 56, of Waltham, Christchurch, died while swimming at the Pioneer Recreation and Sport Centre in Lyttelton Street, Somerfield.

A seaside holiday turned to tragedy for a New Zealand woman who drowned after saving her fiance when he slipped off rocks at a West Australian beach.

A man is in critical condition after being revived following a near-drowning in Northland this afternoon.