A fishing boat that ran aground on the Otago coast has "pretty much broken up" following the dramatic rescue of two crewmen this morning.
The boat - the Tamahine - ran aground at Taiaroa Head, below the Royal Albatross Centre on Otago Peninsula.
A police spokesman said they were alerted to the incident about 7.30am.
Otago Regional Council harbour master Steve Rushbrook told RNZ's Midday Report the vessel had "pretty much broken up at this point".
He said staff visited the site this morning and there had been no pollution released into the environment.
The 16-metre boat was heading out for the day when it ran aground about 6.45am, Rushbrook said.
An Otago Daily Times photographer at the scene at the time of the rescue said one of the two people on the boat had made their way on to the rocks, while the skipper stayed on the vessel.
A rescue helicopter crew winched two members down on to the rocks and they battled through the waves to reach the boat and assist the skipper back to the rocks, from where he and the crew member were winched to safety.
A St John spokesman said one person - reported by RNZ to be the skipper - was taken to Dunedin Hospital in a moderate condition, and another was assessed and treated at the scene.
Photos taken later in the morning show the boat breaking up and lying half-submerged in the sea.
Rushbrook said it was "in a location which is not going to interfere with anybody's safe navigation in and out of the harbour here".
"It shouldn't affect anybody going about their normal business, or normal shipping or fishing conditions," he said.
"Really, it's just about keeping eyes out for any debris or pollution...There's one or two bits that have already broken off or started to come loose."
When he arrived at Taiaroa Head this morning he saw the crew member was on land and the skipper was trying to save his vessel.
He said there were plenty of other vessels around whose crews were encouraging the skipper to hang on.
‘‘The waves washed over him on two or three occasions and it was quite concerning for him.
‘‘He just stuck to his ground there and was quite resilient."
Mr Kellas said from a coastguard's point of view the rescue went very smoothly and everything resolved very quickly after the helicopter arrived.
‘‘The helicopter arrived and he was winched off then they winched off the crewman on shore.’’
Mr Kellas said they landed on shore and checked out the crewman.
‘‘He might have had hypothermia but he was moving.’’
Mr Kellas said the sea was flat and there was not even the slightest wind.
‘‘It was dead calm.
‘‘I’m not sure what the event was that caused that vessel to get into difficulty.
‘‘At that hour of the day they must've been heading out fishing.’’
The harbour master said the boat was being monitored by the Coastguard and regional council but rough sea conditions had made it too dangerous to reach.
There was a high chance it would break up in its current position if the swell remained about 1.5 to 2 metres, he said.
The swells could ease in the next 24 hours, and the crews will continue assessing if and what salvage can be done, Rushbrook said.
The amount of fuel on board was unknown.
"These boats tend to carry a few tonnes of fuel on board for their day to day operations...We're just trying to understand what may be on board or may not be, but it's usually a diesel fuel of some description," he said.
If anyone out on the harbour spotted any oil, fuel or debris, they should contact the harbour master straight away, he said.
The boat was owned and operated by a local family who "had a lot of fishing history and knowledge".
"We're not sure what's gone wrong at this moment in time, but no doubt Maritime NZ will lead an investigation and find out in due course," Rushbrook said.
The seas around the South have been whipped up by strong winds in the past few days, MetService says.
The forecaster said the sea was "very rough" around Dunedin yesterday, with swells rising up to 4m.
- ODT Online/Mark John/additional reporting RNZ
