Wellington.Scoop » Man identified – but not yet found – after falling overboard from ferry

New Zealand Police News
Police have now identified the man who allegedly fell overboard from an East by West ferry in Wellington Harbor on Friday morning.

Police are providing support to the man's family, who we will continue to update as the investigation progresses.

Following a report of a man who had fallen overboard, the Maritime New Zealand Rescue Coordination Center NZ coordinated an extensive on-water search effort using detailed modeling and analysis of the port and search efforts. The search involved up to 14 vessels and a rescue helicopter at its peak. Unfortunately, the man has not yet been located.

Wellington.Scoop – May 26
The search for a man who allegedly fell overboard from a ferry in Wellington Harbor resumed today with help from the Navy. The search is being carried out by the police maritime unit.

Wellington.Scoop – May 25
Police were today searching the shoreline for a man who allegedly went overboard from a Wellington Harbor ferry yesterday morning.

Aquatic searches will resume if more information emerges.

The East By West ferry was heading to Days Bay from Queens Wharf just after 6am. The man was the only passenger and was no longer on board when the ship reached the dock.

Police, coastguards and other vessels searched the port all day yesterday, but police temporarily suspended the search in the evening, pending a review. They still have not identified the man and are asking the public for information.

New Zealand Police News – May 24
Police continue to appeal for help to identify a man who is believed to have fallen overboard from an East by West ferry in Wellington Harbor this morning.

The ferry was heading to Days Bay from Queens Wharf and left just after 6am. The man is described as being in his 40s, light-skinned, around 180cm tall with darker hair. He was wearing a dark jacket with a zipper and dark pants.

The New Zealand Maritime Rescue Coordination Center coordinated an extensive on-water search effort using detailed modeling and analysis of the port. The search involved up to 14 vessels and a rescue helicopter at its peak.

The man has not been located and active searches have been temporarily suspended pending an examination.

If a family member or friend matching this description has not returned home as expected, please contact the police. Anyone with information that could help police identify this person, please call police on 105, quoting file number 240524/6000.

RNZ report
A search is underway at Wellington Harbor today for a man who may have fallen overboard from a ferry. Police said the missing person was a Pākehā man in his 40s. They are looking for information to identify him.

Assistant Harbor Master Patrick Atwood said he was told the only passenger on the first east-west ferry from Queens Wharf to Days Bay at 6 a.m. this morning was no longer on board when the ship sailed. reached the platform.

He said the odds were not in the missing man's favor. It was a cold morning in Wellington and “when they noticed the person was missing, it was still dark.”

“Everything that was available was thrown into the search. I was told that a dozen ships and helicopters participated. Considerable effort was made to try to locate this person.”

He couldn't say where the man might have disappeared in the harbor.

Wellington Coastguard said around 10 to 12 vessels were searching for the missing man this afternoon. Two of the vessels belonged to the coast guard and on board were volunteers who began their search shortly after being alerted to the presence of a man overboard at around 6:30 a.m., the director of the operations center said, Ray Burge. “Their crew is normally four to five people on each ship. »

The Coast Guard was working with police and other vessels to conduct a thorough search of the area, Burge said. “We will just continue to search for the person until (police) determine they have more information and change their plan, continue the search or re-evaluate.”

Conditions on the water, which were drizzle and low visibility, affected search efforts, he said.

“It just changes the plan of the ships on the water. If conditions change and visibility is less, they change their speed, they change their spacing and they just adapt to those conditions. When conditions improve, they can explore a larger area. When they deteriorate, they search a smaller area.

Rebecca Sim, who was trying to catch the ferry this morning, said it was about to dock at Days Bay before its warning lights came on and it moved away.

She and others waiting for the ferry saw it circling the harbor. Instead, she took a bus to work.

East by West Ferries said the search extended from the middle of the harbor to Days Bay. The ferry company said it needed to complete the search before determining what happened.

At 10:45 a.m., a handful of uniformed police officers were on the upper deck of the ferry, moored away from its usual berth, behind security barriers near the Bluebridge ferry terminal.

The Maritime Union said it had no members working at East By West Ferries – but it was concerned about staff on board and their welfare.

“We also sympathize with the family of the person who fell overboard,” said Acting National Secretary Ray Fife. The event was tragic, he said. “I hope they find it.”

All businesses like East By West must have safety procedures and policies in place, and if there were any gaps it would be investigated, he said.

New Zealand maritime data shows two people have fallen from passenger ferries in Wellington in recent years. Its accident, incident and accident notification summary shows the two people fell from a ferry in 2020 at Days Bay Wharf.

A passenger fell overboard after slipping on the lower stairs of the main cabin. And a sailor fell into the water, before swimming under the dock and climbing the ladder. Seven injuries have also been recorded since 2019 – mainly as a result of slips and trips.