Special machine to find missing Aussie

Nicky Park -

New Zealand police will deploy an underwater camera and retrieval machine in a bid to locate the body of a Tasmanian fisherman, presumed drowned in a North Island river.

A Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) will be sent in to the depths of Lake Rotoroa, where Kent Robert Trendall was last seen swimming on Friday afternoon.

Nelson Police are waiting for the right time to deploy the machine, which can go to a maximum depth of 150 metres - the lake, in Nelson Lakes National Park, is about 145 metres deep.
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"It's (able to give) back live imagery to the people in the boat and also has a body retrieval ability," Sergeant John Maxwell from Nelson Police told AAP.

The dive squad can only reach a depth of 50 metres without the assistance of a decompression chamber.

After returning from a fishing trip with a couple of Kiwi mates last Friday, Mr Trendall, 27, went for a swim, dressed in baggy, three-quarter jeans, which could potentially have dragged him out to deeper water.

He may have been affected by alcohol when his friends lost sight of him, Sgt Maxwell said.

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