Family members of a missing teenager were keeping an emotional vigil on a Northland beach last night - the latest incident in a horror start to the holiday season in the water.
The 16-year-old boy was swept out to sea off 90 Mile Beach at Hukatere in the Far North where he had been swimming with family.
Hukatere Lodge owner Gabriele Pfaender rushed to the beach, fearing guests were involved. She spoke to the boy's distraught mother.
"She was just crying and crying and somebody had her in their arms. It's terrible, it makes me sick to think about it."
The current looked strong yesterday, Pfaender said.
"The sea is always different, one day it's like a lake and you can go in and other times it's a strong current and you wouldn't ... you've got to be careful in the water always."
The holiday season has already seen:
Two Christmas Day water fatalities; a 1-year-old at her family's Manurewa home and a 25-year-old crab fisherman in Northland;
•A 47-year-old surfer died at Karioitahi Beach, 70km southwest of Auckland, on Boxing Day on a surfboard he got for Christmas;
•And yesterday a man hurt his back at Hunua Falls, and a surfer suffered a suspected neck injury at Sandy Bay near Whangarei.
Last night, as the search for the 16-year-old continued, Water Safety New Zealand chief executive Matt Claridge made a plea for holidaymakers to act responsibly around water.
That message was important for men as they were more likely to drown than women. Parents also needed to be vigilant in keeping their children safe and helping them develop good water sense, he said.
That meant swimming between the flags at patrolled beaches and learning safe places to swim at unpatrolled beaches. Rivers were notorious for drowning and swimmers should be aware of currents and hidden objects, he said.
And pools should be fenced, and temporary pools flipped over when not in use.
"It only takes two centimetres of water and less than a minute for someone to drown, and it's silent."
In another incident yesterday, the Hamilton-based Westpac Rescue Helicopter went to Kawhia after an 11-year-old girl suffered a severe allergic reaction while swimming.
The girl's parents told the chopper crew their daughter vomited and had several welts on her arms and legs. She suffered several seizures and was flown to Waikato Hospital.
Lifeguards were also kept busy at Mt Maunganui and Omanu beaches yesterday, rescuing seven people, including a father and son swept 400m out into the surf by a rip.
Meanwhile, onlookers watched in shock as a young man failed to surface after jumping off Hunua Falls. Witnesses said he was making hand signals and "showing off" as he leaped from the falls, south of Auckland.
He landed on his back and took about 10 seconds to resurface, said witness, Auckland man Martin Liupuhi. He eventually resurfaced with a bleeding nose.
