Three fishermen missing off Hakaufasi Reef, Vava'u [1]
Friday, May 31, 2013 - 14:31. Updated on Monday, September 9, 2013 - 18:40.
Three of six fishermen who went diving off Hakaufasi Reef in Vava'u have been missing since Wednesday, May 29, after they failed to return to their boat after their dive.
The men were reported missing by the other three fishermen who made it safely into Neiafu on Thursday afternoon.
Tonga Police said that a search operation had not been carried out due to the bad weather and rough seas. The Acting Police Commissioner Koloale'o Soakai said they had organized vessels for the search, which will proceed once the weather clears up.
Kilisimasi Ma'ukoloa, one of the fishermen told Matangi Tonga that they started diving for fish and lobster around 7:00pm on Wednesday after arriving at the reef in their small boat earlier in the day.
He said while diving they encountered strong winds and rough seas. "After hours of diving I decided with two others who were diving close to me to try and get back to the reef because we felt the swell was gettting stronger," he said.
"We each had a torch which we left on to give light to the other men so they could find their way back to the reef but up to yesterday morning we saw no sign of them and the sea was getting rougher. We thought it was best to try and return to Neiafu since the weather was getting worse, and to report the matter to the police," he said.
Kilisimasi said the three missing men were experienced fishermen who had dived in the area numerous times before.
Hakaufasi Reef is located about 20 miles from Neiafu and takes a few hours to reach.