Jet skier describes rescue of man, horse in West Auckland floodwaters

August 31, 2021

The rescue was captured on video in Kumeū today.

A brave jet skier has come to the rescue of a man - and a horse - trapped in West Auckland flood waters.

Rescuer Antony Martinovich said the man had been with him on the back of the jetski as they tried to rescue a horse stuck in the floodwaters.

When they approached the horse, the steed tried to jump on the back of the jetski, causing it to flip and for the man to be washed downstream.

Once recovered, Martinovich picked him up out of the water and went back to rescuing the horse, which had been caught on fence wiring.

A team of 20 to 30 people helped dismantle the fence and get the horse to safety, Martinovich said.

"It ended up being a massive team effort with a bunch of locals.

Auckland’s west bore the brunt of the weather event.

"We all came up with some great ideas and were able to get it done. We saved a horse and saved a person who fell off the jetski."

Fellow rescuer Carl Burbage said they had been alerted to the situation when they saw a post on Facebook this morning.

"The water was about chest deep but the current was really fast.

"So many guys came in with their winch trucks and helped pull the horse to safety. The poor young fella is only about a year or two old but he's alive and not too badly cut up so that's good."

So far, the worst affected areas have been Auckland's west, with parts of the North Shore also affected.

The main street in Kumeū has closed after it appeared to turn into a river.

The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said it was the second wettest day on record for Kumeū since records began in 1943.

The weather agency said 208.2mm of rain fell from 9am Monday to 9am Tuesday, including 201mm of in the 14 hours from Monday night to Tuesday morning.

NIWA also said 149 per cent of the August monthly normal rainfall fell in a single day.

1 NEWS captured the incident from the air, as the region deals with the torrent of rain that fell overnight.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand said they received more than 150 calls for assistance, mainly for flooding at residential properties and to help people trapped in their cars.

Fifty homes have been evacuated, people trapped, and cars swept away due to flooding, according to the Science Media Centre.

A heavy rain warning is in place for Auckland, the Coromandel Peninsula, and Great Barrier Island until 4pm.

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