Two men have been rescued from an upturned Chatham Islands commercial fishing vessel 1.8 kilometres south of Pitt Island this morning.
The men set off a beacon signal in an area that is a known black spot for VHF radio.
Another local fishing boat was directed to the scene and arrived to find the two crew sitting on the upturned hull.
Rescue Coordination Centre NZ spokesman Chris Wilson said the skipper and crew did a great job to get there so quickly.
The cause of the capsize was not known.
The vessel has been righted and was being towed to shore.
Search and rescue officer Chris Wilson said the rescue showed how important an emergency beacon was for boats - particularly in areas where radio reception was weak.
"Having that equipment allowed us to know very quickly what the boat was and where it was was, and get help to it. If they hadn't had that, it may have been quite some hours before they were noticed missing or overdue."
