River search challenges divers

Police divers abseiling in their kit isn’t something you see every day, but a recent river operation combined above ground rope work with underwater searching.

On 11 October, the Wellington-based Police National Dive Squad was called in to help Putāruru police search for a 68-year-old Auckland man.
He had fallen out of his kayak on the Waihou River, South Waikato, while paddling with his 71-year-old friend.

The man was swept into white water and last seen at the base of a waterfall.
OC Police National Dive Squad, Sergeant Bruce Adams, says the team was familiar with the area, having undertaken a search there a couple of years ago.

“It’s a very rugged, narrow gorge with high sides, swift white water and an underground section,” says Bruce. “There are little or no areas to extract yourself.”

However, the 71-year-old companion and the two kayaks were washed down the rapids to a log jam where the elderly man was able to get to safety.

The squad’s plan included searching the rapids and a five metre deep pool, down stream of the rapids. This required local SAR staff sourcing abseiling equipment to safely tender divers in the rapids.

An initial pool search recovered items of clothing and kayaking gear. This was followed by removal of the log jam and kayaks. Use of an underwater camera was unsuccessful due to the flow and aeration of the water. A further dive found nothing.

“We believed the man was trapped beneath the rapids and time would be required before he surfaced,” says Bruce.

“Hopefully, the cleared log jam would allow the missing man to pass through unobstructed and allow a safe recovery.”

The 13-hour day concluded with a briefing to the man’s family and planning for the second day’s search.

The following morning’s searches of the pool and down stream revealed nothing. The Dive Squad stood down and returned to Wellington.

Seventeen days later, Dave contacted Putāruru police for an update. Despite daily searches, including jet boats, the man was still missing. Plans were discussed to involve engineers to divert the river.