30 Sep 2017

Man found dead in Ruapehu's crater lake

3:46 pm on 30 September 2017

A 39-year-old man has been found dead in Mount Ruapehu's crater lake.

Mount Ruapehu

Mt Ruapehu Photo: 123RF

Police said the Taupō man had been reported missing by his family last night after he failed to return home from a day skiing on the mountain.

His car was in the Whakapapa skifield carpark, but he could not be found.

Bad weather meant a search couldn't get under way until first light this morning, with ground teams and a helicopter.

The man was found not long after the search began.

Police said they thought the man accidentally fell into the lake. He was found in an area where people go to get good views of it.

"It is an absolute tragedy for this man's family," senior sergeant Grant Alabaster said.

"We are thankful we were able to locate him in a relatively short period of time to enable us to get him back to his family."

The matter has been referred to the Coroner.