Four fishermen have been rescued from a life raft north of Kaikoura.
Two helicopters were sent out responding to a mayday this afternoon searching for the vessel named Victory 2.
By the time they arrived, it had sunk in 50 metres of water.
But the group were in luck - a nearby crayfishing vessel took them aboard and returned to shore unscathed.
Rescue Coordination Centre NZ senior search and rescue officer John Ashby said today the fishermen both sent out a mayday call and triggered their beacon.
"Carrying two forms of communication is really important and having a beacon really takes the search out of search and rescue."
Newshub.
