Two ill prepared Dunedin men were found floating down the
Taieri River early this morning in a homemade raft following
a major search and rescue operation last night.
Dunedin Police were advised at 9.30pm that the 22-year-olds
had not met a friend at the Outram Bridge at 5pm, and a
search and rescue operation, which also invovled the Water
Rescue Squad, was launched.
Earlier that morning the pair had set off on a home-made raft
- made from plywood and inner tubes- from Hindon.
The weather conditions were miserable, Senior Sergeant Kelvin
Lloyd said.
The large search party, which at one point was going to
include a helicopter equipped with night vision equipment,
worked in the poor weather conditions to locate the pair.
A ground team located the pair floating down the Taieri River
at 3am, and a police patrol talked to them half an hour
later.
The pair were cold but otherwise unharmed from their ordeal,
Snr Sgt Lloyd said.
The homemade craft and their preparation was found to be
poor, and the men had placed themselves and the safety of
those searching for them at risk, he said.
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