New Zealand

Navy scans seafloor images in search for boy

17:59 pm on 21 January 2013

Police say the Navy is reviewing images collected from the seabed on Monday as part of their search for the body of a boy lost at sea in the Firth of Thames.

The 11-year-old drifted away from his family about 2am on Friday after their runabout capsized on Thursday morning between Waiheke Island and the Coromandel Peninsula. None were wearing lifejackets.

The Navy sent a device to the seabed which takes photographs of large areas for any sign of the body.

The three other people on board, a 15-year-old boy and two men aged 21 and 39, were rescued on Friday after spending more than 20 hours in the water.

Sergeant John Saunders, of the Maritime Unit in Auckland, says after the navy reviews data from Monday they will search the remaining areas on Tuesday.