The boat that capsized near Greymouth this week will be salvaged today, the district's mayor says.

The Greymouth Coastguard took about 45 minutes to get to the wreck of the Lady Anna; after the skipper had been pulled from the water and pronounced dead.

The devastated father of the skipper, killed today when his boat capsized near Greymouth, has spoken about the pain of losing is only son in the tragedy.

A fisherman rescued from his sinking boat on Friday had survived a similar incident three years ago.

Two stricken hunters' lives were probably saved in Fiordland after they used their locator beacons to call for help, the Rescue Co-ordination Centre says.

A woman trapped down a steep rock face at the Omanawa Falls was airlifted to safety last night.

A hunter with hypothermia has been rescued after his campsite was washed away in Fiordland this morning.

The changing climate will increase security threats to Australia, including the possible collapse of fragile states in the region and resource wars, a new report has warned.

Two swimmers on Auckland's North Shore had to be rushed to hospital in the back of a police car because ambulances had been sent to higher priority jobs.

A search is expected to resume this morning at a Northland beach for a missing swimmer presumed drowned.

Police have launched a search for a 34-year-old Auckland man who was last seen off Northland's Uretiti Beach about 5pm yesterday.

An anxious mother cried tears of gratitude and relief after her 12-year-old son was dragged from the surf in a dramatic rescue at Napier's Marine Parade yesterday.

The father of a 12-year-old boy who was swept out to sea in heavy surf in Napier has thanked rescuers for forming a human chain that saved his son's life.

The body of a missing pilot has been found after a helicopter crash near Turangi yesterday.

A tramper has had to be airlifted out of Nelson Lakes National Park near Murchison after falling down a bank.

Swift-water rescue teams saved 16 children after their bus was trapped by flash flooding in southern Brisbane in a huge storm dumping heavy rain on southeast Queensland.

A man who fell several metres into the rough sea while fishing from rocks in Wairarapa today was rescued by a local fishing boat.

Martin lies in agony, his clavicle broken and three fingers mangled beyond recognition. He has no idea what is about to happen.

A helicopter emergency locator beacon was set off accidentally on Saturday, prompting a second warning from police in only two weeks.

Waiheke Island residents have rallied to help the Auckland rescue helicopter service which made 265 trips there last year and needs an all-weather landing pad.

A fisherman roped himself to a buoy in Tauranga Harbour after his kayak was swamped with water.

A man whose brother and father have been found alive almost 24 hours after going missing on a fishing trip says he feared he would never see them again.