The destruction of an expensive Go Local Turtle Tours safety boat, has the company’s young owners shocked and dismayed at the extent a ‘heartless’ vandal has gone to try and sabotage their successful business.

This week’s slashing of the Go Local rescue boat is the worst, and most costly act of vandalism to affect at least three turtle tour operators. To date, vandalisation has been confined to the advertising signs belonging to three turtle tour companies, including Go Local.

The matter has been reported to Police.

Police spokesperson Trevor Pitt confirmed receiving a complaint from Go Local at 6.20am yesterday. 

“That was with the tail end of night shift so the matter has been referred to (yesterday’s) early shift to follow up. Suspected to have been wilfully damaged overnight,” Pitt said.

Go Local manager Matt Robinson believes the vandal would have carried out the destructive act in the early hours of Thursday morning, when roads are quiet and the neighbourhood sleeping.

The safety boat was securely anchored in the water directly opposite the beach where the company operates.

“Whoever did this disgusting thing would’ve had to be out at our location in Vaimaanga early in the morning, go into the cold and choppy water with a sharp knife and do so much damage to our safety boat. This person must have so much hate, jealousy, or just plainly mentally unbalanced to go to that extent and do such a vile thing. Maybe it’s a sad combination of all three.”

The IRB (Inflatable Rescue Boat) is irreparable and will cost the local company several thousands to replace.

Robinson said: “The safety boat is of critical importance to our tours, it enables us to take families with young children to experience the beautiful marine life, it has enabled us to move quickly into open ocean and rescue people on other tours who have been dragged out to sea, we’ve even rescued visitors who think they can swim in the passage without a local guide – its value to our tour operation is beyond the dollar sign, it’s about safety and being able to quickly be there whenever someone is in trouble out in the water, whether they’re part of a Go Local tour or not.”

Go Local is again using its original IRB, to ensure their tours continue with the full complement of safety equipment.

“But it’s not as efficient as the new IRB that’s now been completely wrecked. And it’s soul-destroying that this happens, we spent a lot of time and money ensuring that it met with all the safety criteria including installing custom-made prop guards,” Robinson said.

“Whoever did this didn’t stop to think about the safety of those that participate in turtle tours, or even those who try to venture out in the passage on their own. We feel the person who did this to our IRB has to be some kind of serious headcase, who has a lot of anger and hate in their heart.”

Just hours before the IRB was irreparably destroyed, it had been used by the Go Local team to rescue two middle-aged men who had swum out into Vaimaanga passage on their own, despite being called to return to shore by the team.

“It was lucky that we were waiting on the beach for clients on Wednesday evening to give them a refund because of tour cancellation due to dangerous conditions, when we saw these guys swimming out into the passage. We called out and whistled to them, but were ignored. We had to race back to one of the team’s house to pick up the boat engine and fuel, rescue floats and other safety gear, and we sped out as soon as we got back.

“By the time we reached them, they were in trouble and a bit further and longer they would have been in very, very serious trouble. Their wives who were onshore and watched the whole rescue, were very thankful the men got back safely. It’s not a walk in the park to go out in the passage when it’s really rough to do a rescue, we’re putting our own lives at risk to help people who ignore the signs and calls to return to shore.”

Robinson said they operate in an area that’s away from all the other tour operators, “we don’t get involved in any of the drama that goes on at the other end of the beach, we just carry on with what we do, look after our clients and our marine life”.

“We respect and have signed the Memorandum of Understanding issued by the government, we are all locals and all from Takitumu and grew up swimming and fishing in Ava’avaroa Passage.”

• Flo Syme-Buchanan of Manavamedia