Not Their Day

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30937, 18 December 1965, Page 3

Not Their Day

(New Zealand Press Association)

NELSON, Dec. 17. A fisherman struggled for his life through heavy seas after his launch capsized and sank in Westhaven Inlet yesterday afternoon. He is Peter Terry, aged 24, married, with one daughter. Mr Terry managed to scramble up the beach after being washed back several times in the boisterous surf. Dazed and shocked, he walked several miles over rough hill country to his home at Mangarakau. While Mr Terry was battling for his life, his father was being towed into French Pass, 80 miles away, after sending out a distress call when a fishing net became entangled with the propeller of his launch.

The Terrys exchanged boats two weeks ago. Mr Peter Terry took over the 30-foot Zepher to go into business on his own behalf as a crayflshennan at Westhaven and his father, Mr Don Terry, accepted the much older 39ft Ngaio for trawling. The Zepher, which was built by Mr Don Terry in 1950 retained some buoyancy through its fuel tanks after it sank and was later washed ashore. Mr Terry today began an attempt to salvage it. Before he was washed overboard, Mr Terry sent out a distress call when the launch developed a serious leak forward and sank by the bob’.