Person missing, car found in Tairua River - search called off for night

Sunday, 29 April 2018

The registered owner of the submerged car was reported missing half an hour before the empty vehicle was found in the river.

The search for a missing man in the Coromandel has been called off for the night and will resume at 7am on Monday.

Police had been searching for the man after his car was found submerged in the Tairua River.

The car was found empty at 6pm and its registered owner was reported missing at 5.30pm Sunday, after leaving a friend's house.

It was found submerged off Hikuai School Road.

Police have refused to give any details about the missing person, but in a release 90 minutes after initially saying a person was missing, they confirmed it was a man they were searching for.