Southlanders pay respects to prominent businessman
The family of Bluff businessman Peter McKenzie says his death is a huge loss.
Peter McKenzie died following a boating incident at sea near the Wairaurahiri River mouth last weekend.
His family say the experienced jet boater knew the area well.
McKenzie’s funeral was held yesterday at the Invercargill Christian Centre.
McKenzie’s son Daniel McKenzie said that from witness accounts it appeared his father had suffered a medical issue and lost consciousness, and the boat was swamped by a rogue wave.
Police confirmed yesterday that investigations were ongoing.
Sea conditions were reasonable on the day of the incident and the three men were returning from lifting whitebaiting nets at the Waitutu River mouth.
‘‘There was an enduring distance swim to shore after letting off a flare. One of the men crossed rugged bush and challenging terrain to get help. Unfortunately it came too late to save Peter,’’ Daniel said.
‘‘We will have to wait for the postmortem results to be sure of what happened but Dad knew that part of the coast well and the two passengers say they felt safe. Dad respected the sea and was an expert boatie. We are devastated and ask for privacy so we can come to terms with this awful tragedy.’’
McKenzie was the managing director of Bluff company McKenzie Marine and Mackraft, which he started with his brother Morrell in 1986.
The jet-boat building business began when Morrell began building a boat for his uncle, then one for a friend and one for himself. The company now sells a variety of jet boats in countries including New Zealand, Australia, Israel and Austria.
The brothers enjoyed success on the world stage – Morrell was a former New Zealand and world champion jet boater, with Peter the co-driver.