In what could be mistaken for a scene in Castaway, a lone surfer who was injured and stranded on a West Auckland beach has been rescued.
While surfing at Karekare Beach, the man lost his board and was swept onto the rocks of the remote beach.
He tried to find help by walking for two hours, before getting lost and was unable to continue as a result of his injuries.
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Astonishingly, he then made a last ditch effort to draw attention to his whereabouts by writing 'HELP' in sand hoping someone would see it.
Luckily, a woman who happened to be walking on a nearby track spotted the man writing the message, after which she alerted United North Piha Surf Club at about 3.30 pm.
Lifeguards rushed to the scene on a Surf Rescue jet ski and performed first aid on the surfer.
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Surf Life Saving's rescue communications centre SurfCom confirmed to NZ Herald that the patient was earlier declared missing by his wife. They then informed the man's family that he had been located.
Search and Rescue supervisor John-Michael Swannix said the man was 'very lucky' to have been spotted in the remote area.
"The message in the sand is not visible from the walking tracks at the northern end of Mercer Bay, so it was very lucky the informant and her friend were at the southern end and able to see it," Swannix said.
"With Auckland in alert level 3, not as many people are out and about at the moment so it's also lucky someone was walking the track at that time."
Featured Image Credit: Surf Life Saving NZTopics: New Zealand, News