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Seven people were killed and another person was missing after a chartered fishing boat disappeared from view in large waves at the entrance to a harbor near Auckland, New Zealand authorities said.

The boat Francie was carrying 11 people when it got into trouble on Saturday afternoon in Kaipara Harbour. Rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the water, who were taken to a hospital. A search for the missing person was continuing Sunday, said police Inspector Duncan Hall.

Crew members from the boat notified the coast guard that they were attempting to cross a sandbar at the entrance to the harbor at about 2 p.m., said Patrick Holmes, the chief executive of Coastguard New Zealand.

He said the coast guard raised the alarm an hour later after the boat didn't report back and could no longer be reached on its marine radio or by mobile phone.

Other boats in the area reported to the coast guard that they could no longer see the boat, although he wasn't yet clear if it had sunk. An investigation was underway.

Waves at the sandbar were about four meters (13 feet) high at the time of the accident, Holmes said. Sandbars are formed by sand building up on the seafloor, something which can happen at harbor entrances where the ocean meets calmer harbor water.

"All sandbar crossings are dangerous. They shift with storms and tides, so the bars are not in exactly the same position," Holmes said. "Because it's a disturbance of the seafloor, the action of the waves becomes distorted and irregular."

Eyewitnesses told Television New Zealand that rescuers in helicopters plucked the survivors from the water and placed them on a beach, where locals kept them warm until ambulances arrived.

Police said they were still trying to establish what happened to the boat and how its occupants ended up in the harbor, which is about 75 kilometers (47 miles) northwest of Auckland.

Inspector Hall said rescuers recovered five bodies from the water soon after the accident. Another two bodies washed ashore at nearby beaches and were found early Sunday.

The Facebook page for Francie Charters says its boat Francie is licensed to carry up to 20 people with two crew members. It shows customers using fishing rods to catch snapper and other fish, and encountering dolphins.</s>WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Seven people were killed and another person was missing in a boating accident near Auckland, New Zealand, on Saturday, police said.

Inspector Duncan Hall said the chartered fishing boat Francie was carrying 11 people when it got into trouble in Kaipara Harbour near Auckland. He said rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the water, who were taken to a local hospital.

He said rescuers also recovered five bodies from the water soon after the accident. Another two bodies washed ashore at nearby beaches and were found early Sunday.

Hall said in a statement that the fishing boat was reported as overdue to emergency services at 3:30 p.m. Police were still trying to establish what happened to the boat and how its occupants ended up in the water. Hall said conditions on Saturday were poor, with large sea swells.

An air search for the missing person was suspended overnight and resumed on Sunday in the harbor, which is about 75 kilometers (47 miles) northwest of Auckland.

Eyewitnesses told Television New Zealand that rescuers in helicopters plucked the survivors from the water and placed them on a beach, where locals kept them warm until ambulances arrived.

The TV station reported that the accident happened at the entrance to the harbor, an area which is notorious for producing treacherous conditions for boats.

The Facebook page for Francie Charters says its boat Francie is licensed to carry up to 20 people with two crew members. It shows customers using lines to catch snapper and other fish, and encountering dolphins.</s>WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Five people are dead and three others missing after a boating accident in New Zealand, according to police.

Inspector Duncan Hall said that a boat carrying 11 people got into trouble on Saturday in Kaipara Harbour near Auckland. He said rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the water, who were taken to a hospital. He said rescuers also recovered five bodies.

Hall said in a statement the boat was reported as overdue to emergency services at 3:30 p.m. Police were still trying to establish what happened to the boat and how its occupants ended up in the water.

Hall said teams had ended an aerial search for the night and would start again early Sunday.

The New Zealand Herald newspaper reported the vessel was a chartered fishing boat.</s>WELLINGTON: Up to eight people are feared dead after a chartered fishing boat sank in New Zealand on Saturday, police said.

Five bodies have been recovered and three people remain missing seven hours after the vessel overturned near Kaipara Harbour, north of Auckland.

The police initially said six people had been pulled from the water but later confirmed only three survivors had been found.

“The bodies of five people have been recovered from Kaipara Harbour,” the police said in a statement.

“Three other people have been rescued and are in hospital. A search for a further three people will continue.”

Police have been told that 11 people were on the boat, known as The Francie, which went down when returning to the harbor in the afternoon.

The Francie, listed as a 12-meter (40-foot) long boat that can carry a maximum of 22 people, capsized at the entrance to Kaipara Harbor.

Police inspector Duncan Hall told reporters a shoreline search would continue during the night for the missing three people but an aerial search had been called off.

“Conditions are not suitable for an air search to continue tonight due to a significant sea swell. Visibility is poor, which would put rescue aircraft and their crews at risk,” he said.

A former skipper of The Francie, who now operates another charter boat, told the New Zealand Herald that conditions were “too rough” to have taken the vessel out of the harbor.

“I stayed home, I’m not stupid,” the Herald quoted Rod Bridge as saying.

“The wind was coming up and the swell was coming up. You wouldn’t go out over the bar.” AFP</s>Five people are dead and three others are missing after a boating accident in New Zealand, police said.

Inspector Duncan Hall said a boat carrying 11 people got into trouble in Kaipara Harbour near Auckland on Saturday.

He said rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the water, who were taken to hospital. He said rescuers also recovered five bodies.

Mr Hall said in a statement that the boat had been reported as overdue to emergency services. Police were still trying to establish what happened to the boat and how its occupants ended up in the water. He said conditions on Saturday were poor, with large sea swells.

He said teams had ended an aerial search for the missing people and would resume searching again early Sunday.

Television New Zealand reported the vessel was a chartered fishing boat and that rescuers had arrived in helicopters, plucking the survivors from the water and placing them on a beach, where locals kept them warm while waiting for ambulances.</s>A POLICE officer remains missing on Saturday while two civilian agents died after the motorized boat they were riding capsized in the middle of heavy waves brought about by Typhoon “Marce” off the waters of a remote village in Langonoy, Camarines Sur.

Senior Supt. Walfredo Pornillos, Camarines Sur Provincial Police Office director, identified the fatalities as Tomas Rentoy 4th and Isagani Dadis.

Senior Police Officer 4 Edwin Pago remained missing and has been the subject of a search and rescue operation ongoing since Saturday morning.

They were part of the 11-man team of Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Camarines Sur, led by Chief Insp. Ronnie Pabia, and the Provincial Intelligence Bureau (PIB) who were going to Garchitorena town for a drug-related operation.

Pabia said they left Tamban pier in Tinambac town, at about 9 a.m. on Friday for their destination on board a motorized boat. About 30 minutes later, upon reaching the part of Lagonoy Gulf within the jurisdiction of Barangay Mapid in Lagonoy town, their motorboat was battered by tall waves and strong winds.

Pornilllos said the Langonoy Municipal Police Station was conducting further investigation to determine the identities of the other police personnel.

Initial investigation revealed that among the group on board the boat only Pabia, Rentoy and another police officer were wearing life jackets.

Pabia said that Rentoy did not know how to swim and he assisted him to get to shore.

However, a series of huge waves caused Rentoy to be separated from him and eventually disappeared from view. He was later found dead at a rocky portion a few meters from the shore. Pabia also suffered minor injuries and collapsed near the shore.

It was not immediately known how Dadis – also reported dead – was found.

‘Human error’

 The CIDG officer blamed human error and the unpredictable weather for the mishap.

“We usually receive weather advice on our cellphone. That day, we didn’t and at the Tamban pier in Tinambac town, there were passengers coming and going, even children going to school, so we thought it was just a normal day,” Pabia said.

He added that they were also assured of the seaworthiness of the boat they rented by one of its crew whom he also asked to coordinate with the Coast Guard stationed at the pier for advice.

Their trouble began thirty minutes after they left the pier when they reached the part of the Lagonoy Gulf in the Pacific Ocean called by the local fishermen as “padi-padi” for the towering white waves in the area.

“Suddenly, a four-feet high wave overturned our boat and threw all those off board, including the three crew members,” he narrated.

The officer could not recall how he survived the chubasco or gust of wind.

All he could remembered, he said, was asking the residents of Barangay Mapid where eight of them were able to swim ashore, to help his men who were still on the water.
At least seven people are dead, one person is missing and three others are rescued after a chartered fishing boat capsizes due to large waves in Kaipara Harbour, New Zealand.