Bethells beach incident: One person airlifted to hospital, two others rescued

One person has been airlifted to hospital following an incident in the water at Bethells Beach in Auckland this afternoon.

Two other people were also rescued from the water, uninjured.

A Surf Life Saving New Zealand spokesperson said they received notification at 5.40pm today from Hato Hone St John regarding three people in distress at Auckland’s Bethells Beach.

The Bethells Beach Surf Life Saving Patrol Search and Rescue squad was then quickly activated.

“Using two Inflatable Rescue Boats (IRBs), the team located two people. After safely returning them to shore, the IRBs continued their search and found a third person who was unconscious and unresponsive,” they said.

The person ashore was then brought ashore, where surf lifeguards immediately initiated CPR.

The Westpac Rescue Helicopter soon arrived and airlifted the patient from the beach.