'Don't want any dead heroes' - Seven rescued from Waikato River

Seven people had to be rescued near Taupo’s Huka Falls last night as the air came out of an evening excursion down the Waikato River.

Around 7.20pm, Police were alerted to a group of four men who had got into trouble after deciding to float from the control gates down to Reids Farms.

The quartet were using basic inflatables and none of them were wearing life jackets.

As they neared the end of their journey, the inflatables lost buoyancy and the men began to panic. Their cries for help were heard by a nearby tour group with three members jumping into the river to help, despite not having flotation devices themselves.

The Police arrived to find the four men and the trio of would-be rescuers hanging onto a tree.

The Coastguard and Harbour were called and using a jetboat and a jetski, the three agencies combined to rescue the seven people by 8pm.

A relieved Senior Constable Barry Shepherd says the incident could have had a far more serious outcome.

“We want people to have fun and enjoy the outdoors but there’s a safe way to do it”.

Senior Constable Shepherd acknowledged that while it was admirable that people tried to help, they “don't want any dead heroes”.

He was full of praise for the Coastguard, Harbourmaster and his Taupo Police colleagues for their “quick thinking and coordinated response”.

“This situation could have been drastically worse and their actions prevented a potential tragedy”.

Police are reminding the public that for any water-related incident, call 111 immediately.