Attributable to Senior Sergeant Richard Miller, Acting Eastern Bay of Plenty Area Commander

Police are continuing to monitor river conditions after the serious crash in Waioeka on Friday that has left one person unaccounted for.

About 10.20am on 4 October, emergency services were alerted that a single vehicle had gone down a bank and into the Waioweka River, about 2.5km south of the Tauranga Bridge, on State Highway 2.

Search and rescue teams, including a boat, helicopter and Coastguard jet skis continued sweeps of the river and riverbank on Friday. Unfortunately, the person and vehicle were unable to be located.

Since that time, conditions on the river have remained dangerous; rain in the headwaters of the Opato and Waioweka has kept the river levels high, making it unsafe to enter the river.

A jet boat has continued to make sweeps of the river each morning and afternoon, monitoring river flow, depth and clarity of the water.

Police Search and Rescue and the Police National Dive Squad continue to assess all information available and will deploy as soon as conditions permit.

Police and rescue agencies remain committed to returning their loved one to whānau as soon as it is possible.

We urge people who might be considering undertaking their own search activity in the river to please refrain from doing so given the risks posed by the conditions.

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