About 20 people, drones, helicopters and whitewater rafts were searching for the man until evening on Wednesday, before the search had to be suspended due to extreme weather.
“We need to keep our staff safe, but we also need to appreciate the type of work we’re doing out here and know the risk,” Senior Sergeant Dean Roberts told the Herald on Wednesday.
The Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter above Wairere Scene Reserve, Warkworth, during the search for a man who was washed away at a river crossing on nearby Falls Rd on Wednesday morning. Photo / Jason Dorday
The man’s wife earlier said her husband was a fisherman back home in Kiribati. They had moved to New Zealand in 2023 with their four children, RNZ reported on Thursday.
The woman, who did not want to be named, said her husband and her nephew – who had just moved to New Zealand in December – were taking their usual route to work in Warkworth early morning when they were swept away by water on Falls Rd.
The man’s death is not being treated as suspicious, and will be referred to the Coroner.
It comes as police this afternoon released the names of the six people unaccounted for in Thursday’s massive landslide in Mount Maunganui.