Witnesses of a near drowning in Whangarei at the weekend are keen to find a man who pulled the victim from the surf, probably saving her life in the process.
The woman, aged in her 70s, got caught in a current near Mair Bank at the entrance to Whangarei Harbour on Saturday afternoon, the Northern Advocate reported.
A witness said she saw a man "go splashing past" and swim out to save the woman.
He grabbed her and dragged her to shore with the help of another man, but by that time she was unresponsive and had no pulse.
Luckily a nurse was nearby and managed to clear the woman's airway and get her breathing.
The rescuer, described as tall with dark hair and wearing greenstone around his neck, was thought to be called Eddie, the newspaper reported.
Witnesses didn't know who he was and efforts to track him down - so the victim, named Muriel, could thank him - had been fruitless.
