Official search for Owaka pair called off

Sam Kopua
Sam Kopua
The search for two Owaka fishing friends missing since last Wednesday officially ended yesterday.

Senior Constable Murray Hewitson, of Owaka, said the search for Sam Kopua (77) and Lou Burling (60) ended without the result many had wanted.

''They're lost at sea,'' he said.

Mr Kopua and Mrs Burling were reported missing about 6pm on September 16 after the boat they were in, a 5.2m Kiwi-Kraft Kristala, apparently capsized.

Fog hampered Wednesday night's helicopter search and it was called off at 10.30pm.

The boat was found the following morning, overturned, southeast of Nugget Point.

Lou Burling
Lou Burling
But the large search effort over six days, from Long Point to Dunedin, yielded very few clues and had not turned up their bodies.

''That's the nature of the sea,'' Snr Const Hewitson said.

''It either takes them a long way away, or it just doesn't want to give them back up.''

Mr Kopua was well known for his involvement in the small Catlins community and Mrs Burling was well-known to many of the searchers, as she was a member of the Catlins Land Search and Rescue team, the team that was looking for her.

Not finding the two avid fishers was ''horrible'', Snr Const Hewitson said. Calling off the search had been difficult for those involved.

''Of course, yeah,'' he said.

''No-one wants to end it.''

He said some in the community would continue to search ''here and there''.

He had been speaking to the Kopua and Burling families throughout the search.

Members of the family had come to Owaka for the duration of the search.

A memorial service for the two friends will be held in Owaka tomorrow, starting at 2pm.

hamish.maclean@odt.co.nz

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