May 3<\/a> against the rocks on the side of the gully.<\/p>\nFishing rods and other equipment were also located underwater in the same area.<\/p>\n
The search for Babu was eventually called off and his remains were found by Department of Conservation workers on Coppermines Island on December 19 last year.<\/p>\n
A coroner\u2019s inquest was launched and in findings released today, the coroner pointed out that Northland had 16 land-based fishing-related drownings between 2011 and 2024. <\/p>\n
![\"The]()
The Gap is known for being dangerous and has claimed three rock fishers’ lives. Photo \/ NZME<\/p>\n
One of those had occurred at The Gap and all victims were male.<\/p>\n
Surf Life Saving New Zealand (SLNZ) submitted a report to the coroner that said rock fishing is the most dangerous environment in the country.<\/p>\n
The organisation said The Gap was particularly hazardous and had multiple dangers, including large waves, long swell periods, strong currents and tidal action, and slippery rocks.<\/p>\n
SLNZ noted there is no water safety signage or public rescue equipment at The Gap.<\/p>\n
Coroner Janet Anderson said the men\u2019s deaths were a tragedy and illustrated the need for extreme care when rock fishing and having access to flotation devices.<\/p>\n
In November 2025, the coroner issued her findings to Whang\u0101rei District Council with a request it consider installing safety signage and\/or buoyancy aids at The Gap.<\/p>\n
The council provided an update to the coroner in March saying signs had been installed, but they had since been removed by unknown people.<\/p>\n
In her final report, the coroner recommended the council act urgently to reinstate the signs and endorsed the water safety sector\u2019s five tips for safer rock fishing.<\/p>\n
The five endorsed tips are:<\/p>\n
Know how to float. Only go fishing from rocks if you know how to float well and always wear a life jacket and take a flotation device, like a life ring or a bucket. Life jackets will increase your chance of survival if you fall in. Find the safest place and check conditions: tide, swell, weather, and local hazards. Always face the ocean and be alert for large waves which can knock you off the rocks. If in doubt, stay out. If the weather or conditions look dangerous don\u2019t go fishing, wait for another day.Take care of yourself and others and always fish together. If something happens, the other person can help. Wear light, warm clothing, a life jacket and shoes with grip (not gumboots). Know how to get help and always take a mobile phone.<\/p>\n
Shannon Pitman is a Whang\u0101rei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ng\u0101puhi\/ Ng\u0101ti P\u016bkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The pair had only known each other for four weeks and Babu was a keen fisherman who normally…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":432318,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[432,1975,3043,39018,15166,3087,2082,38114,111,43,139,1067,69,90,1629,6302,5652,26807,223,25444],"class_list":["post-432317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-action","tag-at","tag-call","tag-coroners","tag-deaths","tag-fishing","tag-for","tag-gap","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-northland","tag-nz","tag-on","tag-rock","tag-safety","tag-signs","tag-spur","tag-the","tag-urgent"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=432317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432317\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/432318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=432317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=432317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=432317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}