Emergency services are searching for a man who fell into the Manawatū River and “failed to resurface” while walking his dog this afternoon.
The man got into trouble in the water near Ahimate Reserve in Palmerston North and police were called at around 1.30pm, a spokesperson said.
“When he failed to reappear, his walking companion alerted emergency services.”
A search began immediately, involving police search and rescue staff, a water rescue boat, kayaks, drones, a helicopter and other volunteers.
“Sadly, at this stage, the man has not been located,” police said.
“Searching will continue this evening until dark.”
St John said it responded with one ambulance, one rapid response unit and one manager.
Four people drowned in two separate incidents at Ahimate within five days of each other over the 2021-2022 summer period.
