Missing diver - Te Araroa, New Zealand

[DandyDon]

Stuff

www.stuff.co.nz

Emergency services are searching for a missing diver near Te Araroa, East Cape, after a report was made to police around 10.30am on Wednesday.

The diver was scuba diving off the rocks near 566 East Coast Rd when he failed to surface.

Sea, ground, and air searches have commenced.

 

[DandyDon]

The lost diver was identified as a local rugby legend. Body recovered.

Stuff

www.stuff.co.nz

The man who died while diving off the East Coast was a local rugby legend who held the record for most caps for the Ngāti Porou East Coast rugby union.

Enoka Morgan Pohoikura Waitoa (known as Morgan), 61, failed to resurface while diving near Te Araroa on Wednesday.

A body, believed to be Waitoa’s was recovered by searchers on Thursday.

Waitoa played a record 115 matches for the union. He debuted in 1979 and played his last match for the union in 2006.


The union posted notice of his passing on its Facebook page.

“It is with great sadness we acknowledge the sudden passing of rugby legend Morgan Waitoa. Morgan was a Ngāti Porou East Coast Centurion and was held in great esteem by the whole Ngāti Porou Rugby community”.

“E te whanaupani, heoi te whanau whanui, kei te tangi hotuhotu ana te ao whutuporo! Na reira e te Rangatira haere atu ra kia ratou e whanga nei kia koe i te papatakaro whutuporo kei te rangi!”

The death would be referred to the coroner.