A yacht which capsized off Mt Maunganui costing a crew member his life has been salvaged and is under tow for Tauranga.
Napier yachtsman Michael Claudatos died when the 12-metre yacht Time To Burn tipped on its side and eventually capsized about 20km off Mount Maunganui Main Beach.
Mr Claudatos, 52, and his regular crewmate Warren Clark, 49, also from Napier, were about 5.5km off Motiti Island when the boat got into difficulty early yesterday morning.
They managed to set off the yacht's emergency locator beacon at 5.20am.
"The yacht lurched to its side before tipping portside," said Sergeant Wayne Lambert, of Tauranga police.
"The yacht stayed like this for about half an hour, allowing the occupants to work through emergency protocols.
"Eventually the one metre swell swamped the main sail causing the yacht to completely capsize."
The yacht was spotted from the air, overturned and missing a keel.
When the Tauranga Volunteer Coastguard boat, TECT Rescue, arrived, Mr Clark was found uninjured and clinging to the upturned yacht, while the body of Mr Claudatos was found in the water about 200m away.
Mr Lambert said Mr Claudatos had struggled with his life jacket, before becoming overwhelmed.
"Whether it was through drowning or a heart attack will be established at a post mortem," Mr Lambert said.
He said sea conditions were not rough and the weather was mild.
It was not known how the keel had been lost, Mr Lambert said.
A Coastguard spokeswoman told NZPA the yacht had been salvaged this afternoon and was being towed to Tauranga.
Maritime New Zealand is making inquiries into the incident before deciding whether a full investigation is necessary.
