People 'lucky to be alive' after boat capsizes near Muriwai Beach in Auckland

Sunday, 2 October 2022

Three people who managed to make it back to shore after their boat capsized near Auckland’s Muriwai Beach were “lucky to be alive” a lifeguard said.

Shortly after 10.30am on Sunday, police were called to an incident near Muriwai along with an ambulance and firefighters.

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A police spokesperson said the police helicopter also responded to a capsized boat.

“It appears all the people on board the boat have made it back to shore alive,” the spokesperson said.

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**

Three people needed medical attention and one of these people was seriously injured, the spokesperson said.

Glenn Gowthorpe responded as the lead for the Muriwai volunteer lifeguard service and said six lifeguards responded immediately after hearing a boat had overturned.

Gowthorpe sad the incident happened 2km up the beach from the Muriwai lifeguard tower and it sparked a “major” emergency services response.

“The individuals in the boat are very lucky to be alive, the swell was pretty sizeable, they were the only boat out there.”

Gowthorpe said it appeared not all the people on the boat had been wearing life jackets.

A spokesperson from St John said one person had been taken to North Shore Hospital in a moderate condition, while two others had minor injuries and were treated at the scene.

According to MetService, the swell at Muriwai on Sunday was 1.6m, with good surf and only a small amount of wind.