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.

One of the sunniest summers in more than 50 years saw almost 600 extra people rescued from NZ beaches during the patrol season compared to the year before.

An Auckland man drowned after trying to save his young grandchildren from a rip at an "unforgiving" stretch of Ninety Mile Beach despite a rescuer's desperate attempt to bring him ashore.

A man who died at Piha beach on Tuesday was a British tourist believed to be holidaying in New Zealand with his family.

A soldier who died after falling into a Waiouru lake during a training exercise should have been able to release a 20kg gun easily, the former Chief of Army says.

A 17-year-old boy has drowned at Kai Iwi Lakes near Dargaville despite desperate attempts by his three young friends to revive him.

The difficulties in getting foreign vessels to adhere to NZ standards before going out to sea has been highlighted by a coroner's report into the sinking of Oyang 70.

A man is in a critical condition after a near drowning in Whangamata, on the southeast coast of the Coromandel Peninsula.

The three young men caught in a "strong unforgiving rip" on Auckland's notorious Piha Beach were wearing jeans and totally unaware of the danger they were in.

Two men have drowned in the surf at Piha Beach and a third man rescued from the water is in a serious condition.

Heartfelt messages from friends are reaching out to a grieving expatriate Kiwi man whose son fell into a freezing pond while feeding ducks with his gran.

A New Zealand woman who had been living in Norway drowned at Mt Maunganui beach last night after swimming with a group of family and friends.

Searchers will spend the next two days scouring the shoreline near Bowentown after a man went missing when his boat capsized off the Bay of Plenty coast.

Two boaties have spoken about the moment they came across a family who survived a capsizing that left a father missing off the Bay of Plenty coast.

A Waihi beach fisherman has told of how he found an upside-down boat at Bowentown Heads last night, shortly before a search was mounted for a missing man.

A teenage mum has been charged with hurting her baby by holding his head under water.

Lisa Hayward wants a family friend who plucked her son Zac from a deadly rip to be recognised for his bravery.

Behind every drowning statistic is a grieving family. Robbie Farquhar, 29, died while he was diving at Matakatia Bay. His partner tells her story

The Government is being urged to stump up the cash for surf lifesavers and Coastguard operations, as figures show New Zealand has the third highest drowning rate in the developed world.

New Zealand had its lowest drowning death toll in six years last year - but the number of power boating-related drownings is increasing.