Papanui Point has made national news with RNZ reporting that the regular fatalities occurring off the popular fishing spot have caused Waikato District Council to consider closing access.
The message was repeated at the Raglan Community board meeting this week where there was concern that people have broken fences and knocked down warning signs in an effort to get to their favourite spot.
Papanui Point is the country’s deadliest rock fishing spot with 18 fatalities between 1980 and 2024 and a new loss of life this August.
Glyn Morgan of Waikato District Council said, “Closure is definitely one of the options that would have to be determined across all the land owners and stakeholders,” adding that “it’s a challenging space, but it can be done.”
Closure may not be a silver bullet though, with the coroner noting it could just push fishers to other potentially more dangerous locations.
The Department of Conservation is about to install a sign pointing out the one nearby area that has reliable cell phone coverage in case of emergency, and a recent coroner’s report recommended mandating life jackets for rock fishers.
Te Pāti Māori Co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, says the Government’s fast track process for the Taranaki seabed mining project has triggered unprecedented interest, with between 50 and 60 councils, iwi, hapū, marae, community organisations and companies invited into a rushed 20-day process.
“Our people have again been forced to fight for the moana under impossible timeframes,” she said, listing the many iwi involved as well other community groups including Kiwis Against Seabed Mining.
“The expert panel is doing its job under the law, but they should never have been put in this position. The Supreme Court already threw this project out,” said Ngarewa-Packer, adding that the Fast-track Approvals Act strips away robust hearings and cross-examination, replacing them with a rushed tick-box process.
In sports news Alani Morse is in the water today at the ISA World Surfing Games in El Salvador. Alani will be competing in the Day 5 main round while brother Theo will also be surfing in the Repechage Round 2 heats.
Five of the six team New Zealand team members are still in the competition with only Lola Groube having been eliminated,