Kayaker’s body recovered from Kawarau

2003-04-15T08:45:08+12:00

(30 March) Police recovered the body of Zephlyn Ivan Vlahovic (54) from the Kawarau River near the outlet of Lake Wakatipu. His kayak and paddle were recovered downstream. Mr Vlahovic had no apparent injuries, and police are investigating (Kayaker found dead on Kawarau, ODT). Update 15 April: NZRCA Safety Officer Glenn Murdoch advises “Underneath the Kawarau Falls Bridge there are ten channels separated by concrete walls. Some of these channels contain dangerous reversals. It appears that one of these reversals was the cause of last week’s accident. If the channels are numbered 1 – 10 from true left to true right, channels 1, 6, 9 and 10 have dangerous reversals in them. My recommendation is that people use the second channel from the true left to go under the bridge. Another key factor in this accident appears to be that the kayaker was paddling alone. NZRCA recommends that you never kayak alone.” Queenstown-Lakes District Council has warned kayakers and signs have been placed on the bridge.