Almost Rescue on Lake

A dinghy carrying a Wairarapa father and his three children narrowly avoided a helicopter rescue when they got into trouble in high seas at Western lake on Saturday. The family, who were checking a net in the lake, made it back to shore safely without any help from search and rescue despite the strong winds at the time.

Masterton police Senior Sergeant Warwick Burr said a Western Lake resident called police when she noticed the dinghy having trouble in the high swells and a local Helicopter pilot took flight, expecting a rescue.

“At the time the conditions were bad enough to cause concern and hence that was why a local helicopter went into the air” The search and rescue helicopter was also put on standby but didn’t take flight, he said. The rescue call was made at 11am and by midday the dinghy was safely back on shore.