On Tuesday, a crew from Coastguard Hawke’s Bay were forced to abandon an attempt to rescue three missing fishermen in four metre swells and strong winds.
Skipper of the vessel, Henry van Tuel told 1News the conditions were “just too much”.
“Yeah, look, really, we’re really sorry. We honestly gave it a really good shot,” van Tuel said.
Three men failed to return to Gisborne from a fishing trip as planned on Monday afternoon, and two were sighted briefly in high seas by a passing freighter.
van Tuel said wind gusts were reaching up to 30 knots on Tuesday, while the Coastguard vessel was only managing between 7 to 8 knots.
“We knew the weather conditions were just going to get worse and worse,” Henry said.
His vessel was taking in green water over the boat and into the engine intakes.
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“We were just being slammed,” he said. “We got knocked around in the cabin a couple of times.”
As skipper, he made the call to abandon the search for the safety of his crew.
“We knew, in our hearts, it was the right decision — but not an easy one,” Henry said.
The bodies were recovered on Wednesday morning on the Māhia coastline.
The trio were 37-year-old Elwood Higgins of Gisborne, 33-year-old Taina Sinoti of Te Hapara, and 38-year-old Damien Macpherson of Te Karaka.
van Tuel — who was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the Coastguard in 2022 — said it was the first time in 15 years that he hasn’t been able to finish a job.
“That’s the reason people join Coastguard is to help, you know, to assist people and it is really hard when you know you just can’t do it,” he said.