News
Rock fishing incidents highlight why ongoing safety education is critical
Tuesday, 30 June 2026Two serious incidents last month highlighted the serious risk associated with rock fishing on New Zealand’s unpredictable coastline.
One Saturday last month, SurfCom (our search and rescue communications hub) was notified that a 35-year-old man had fallen into the water while rock fishing near the gannet colony at Muriwai.
The fisherman was fully clothed, but not wearing a lifejacket. Witnesses on the rocks attempted to throw a life ring to him three times, but due to the challenging conditions, he was unable to reach it and quickly drifted out of sight.
Muriwai surf lifeguards and the Search and Rescue (SAR) squad deployed two rescue watercraft (RWC) and an IRB to conduct a thorough shoreline and cave search under rapidly deteriorating conditions, facing choppy waters and a large swell.
The Westpac Rescue Helicopter located and retrieved the man from the water, and tragically, he was confirmed deceased.
The next day, three rock fishermen visiting Sunset Beach in Waikato for the first time walked out to “Flat Rock” during low tide. Unaware of local tide behaviours, they did not check the incoming tide times and quickly found themselves cut off from the mainland. A large swell was actively breaking over the rock, putting the men at risk of being swept into the sea.
Fortunately, two off-duty Sunset Beach lifeguards happened to be at the club conducting out-of-season IRB training. They spotted the stranded group and immediately sprang into action. Gearing up in wetsuits, rescue tubes, helmets, and lifejackets, the lifeguards swam out to the rock, secured the three men, and carefully guided them back through the surf to safety.
These incidents highlight the need for improved education on making rock fishing and other kai-gathering activities safer. Actions like checking the conditions, wearing a life jacket, always facing toward the ocean, and never going alone can make all the difference and ensure everyone gets home safely.
Staying safe around the rocks
If you're heading out fishing or gathering kai, five things can help get everyone home safely:
1. Know how to float: Only go fishing from rocks if you know how to float well. Always wear a lifejacket and take a flotation device, such as a life ring, with you. Lifejackets will increase your chance of survival if you fall in.
2. Find the safest place: Check conditions: tide, swell, weather, and local hazards. Always face the ocean and be alert for large waves, which can knock you off the rocks.
3. If in doubt, stay out: If the weather or conditions look dangerous, don't go fishing - wait for another day.
4. Take care of yourself and others: Always fish together. If something happens, they can help. Wear light, warm clothing, a lifejacket and shoes with grip (not gumboots).
5. Know how to get help: Always take a mobile phone; in an emergency, call 111 and ask for the police.
Lifejacket hubs & Public Rescue Equipment
Wearing a correctly fitted lifejacket increases your chance of survival if you end up in the water. If you don’t have a lifejacket, you can borrow one from a Drowning Prevention Auckland (DPA) Lifejacket Hub.
At several high-risk beaches, lifejacket loan boxes have been installed to make lifejackets available for public use while fishing or visiting the rocks. For more details on where to find these loan public safety stations, visit the DPA website.
At Surf Life Saving clubs across the country, as well as at a growing number of other high-risk locations, new Public Rescue Equipment (PRE), including rescue buoys and life rings, has been installed. These units are available year-round and are specifically designed to enable members of the public to respond safely to water emergencies before emergency services arrive.
A major new partner in prevention
This work is powered by partners and everyday supporters. From 1 July 2026, Fulton Hogan has become a major partner of Surf Life Saving New Zealand, with naming rights to the Fulton Hogan Surf Life Saving New Zealand Beach Education programme and presenting partner of the Fulton Hogan Oceans Festival of Junior Surf Lifesaving.
Together, Beach Education and the Oceans festival help equip more than 27,000 children a year with practical skills and confidence in and around the water - the very lessons that helped David - while celebrating the 2,000+ young and emerging lifeguards coming through our clubs.
Steve Fisher said, "We rely on the support of partners, as well as our donors, who share our commitment to keeping people safe. Fulton Hogan's investment as a major partner will help us sustain and grow our education programmes, support our clubs and volunteers, and ensure more Kiwi kids have the skills they need to stay safe and at the beach."
Read more about the Fulton Hogan Partnership
Help us get everyone home safe
Partnerships get us partway; everyday gifts from people like you do the rest. A donation today helps train volunteer lifeguards, deliver beach education to more than 27,000 tamaraki a year, and put rescue equipment where it's needed most.
- Give online through Donate Today
- Call 0800 33 55 66 with your card handy, and our team will help
- Make a regular gift through Regular Giving
- Leave a gift in your will, call 0800 33 55 66 to find out more
Donations over $5 are tax-deductible.