A fishing tournament on Lake Te Anau almost turned to tragedy, when three adults and five children had to be rescued after their boat sank in rough conditions on Saturday.
The 4.9m fibreglass boat sank within 30 seconds, after it was hit by two waves in poor weather, shortly before 5.30pm on Saturday.
Five children and three adults, from Gore and Te Anau, were rescued by two nearby vessels. While the children, aged between 4 and 9, were wearing lifejackets, the adults, aged 30, 38 and 41 were not, Sergeant Tod Hollebon, of Te Anau, said.
The last person pulled from the lake had been swimming for almost 10 minutes and all were passengers aboard the rescue boats before a helicopter with scoop net arrived, he said.
The stricken vessel was one of 200 involved in the 2008 Stabi-Craft Yamaha Te Anau fishing contest.
Sgt Hollebon said the quick action of two rescue boats helped save the lives of the passengers.
"They had no time to put in a call for help. If the people hadn't viewed that [incident] happen, this could have been a lot worse."
He reminded boat owners of the need to ensure all passengers wore life jackets, he said.
Police were unlikely to press charges but a report on the incident would be given to the relevant maritime authorities.
