Celebrating and supporting Kiwi life savers

A Waikato family was left thanking their lucky stars – and some local heroes - when a boating trip across Raglan’s treacherous bar went horribly wrong last summer. 

With their boat having capsized in the surf, the family of three found themselves in desperate straits, with the mother and son thrown into the water and the father trapped under the upturned hull. 

Fortunately help was close at hand in form of a Raglan Surf Life Saving Club IRB (inflatable rescue boat) that was training nearby. 

The brave, life-saving actions of the crew that raced to the scene, which included a lifeguard diving into the water to cut through tangled fishing lines and rescue the father from the forward cabin, were recognised at New Zealand Search and Rescue’s annual awards, with the Raglan club receiving the prestigious gold award for operational activity. 

That the crew was on hand to save the day was thanks to a network of dedicated club volunteers backed by community funders, including Meridian Energy’s Te Uku Wind Farm Power Up fund. 

Since its inception the fund has provided $68,138 to the club, largely to help maintain its five-boat IRB fleet. 

“Our IRBs are essential pieces of equipment, so it’s great that we have a supporter like Meridian to help fund them,” says Dennis Amoore, a club stalwart tasked with the upkeep of its premises and property. 

“They are critical to our operations. Probably 80 per cent of rescues are now done with an IRB.  

“We run five IRBs at the club and each outboard motor lasts about three years – so we are replacing one or two each year.” 

With each 30 horsepower Mercury two stroke engine costing around $7,500 and the boats around $14,000, ensuring the fleet is properly maintained is both an expensive and vital part of the club’s operations. 

With the famed (and somewhat gnarly) surf break at Ngarunui Beach drawing thousands of visitors every summer, Raglan’s Surf Lifesaving Club is one of the country’s busiest. 

“We’re right up there as one of busiest beaches in the country for the numbers of rescues and preventative actions,” says Dennis. 

“We get huge volumes of international visitors coming to the beach and some of them definitely can’t swim. 

“So, there’s a lot more focus these days on preventive actions – trying to catch people before they get in trouble in the water and we have to rescue them.” 

Consisting of 60-80 senior members and around 100 ‘nippers’ aged 13 and under, the club celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. 

It is currently fund-raising to replace its life-saving tower, which succumbed to erosion three years ago.  

“We’re about halfway to the $1.5 million that we need,” says Dennis. 

The club had hoped to have the new tower in place for the coming summer, but the funding shortfall means it is now hoping to begin construction this year and have the tower in place for the 2026/27 summer. 

When the tower is in place, the club will be turning to funders like Meridian to help upgrade its ageing communications equipment, says Dennis. 

“We apply for a grant every year and Meridian has always been very supportive – and that support helps save lives.” 

About the Te Uku wind farm 

A 28-turbine wind farm near Raglan in Waikato, Te Uku is capable of generating 64.4 megawatts of renewable energy – enough to power about 27,000 average New Zealand homes. 

Meridian built Te Uku in alliance with the local electricity lines company WEL Networks Ltd, which is owned by a community trust. It was the first wind-generation project of its kind undertaken jointly by an electricity generator and retailer and a lines company. 

WEL Networks constructed the 25-kilometre, 33-kilovolt transmission line that carries the power from the wind farm to the network and the national energy grid, while Meridian built 26 kilometres of roads to transport the turbine parts to the wind farm. 

More than $30 million was invested in the regional economy during the construction process, with nearly half of those working on site being from the Waikato region. 

Power Up Te Uku provides grants for projects in Raglan, Te Mata, Waitetuna and Te Uku that support sustainable community development.