The wife of a man whose body was recovered from the yacht Platino this morning says it's a huge relief to have him back on shore.
A tugboat towing the Platino arrived in Whangarei shortly after 9am on Tuesday, with Nick Saull's body on board.
The father-of-four died after being hit by rigging when the yacht struck bad weather about 550km north of New Zealand. Another man, 63-year-old Steve Forno, is still missing overboard, while three others were rescued by a cargo ship.
"After the tragic incident last Monday we are relieved to have Nick home," Mr Saull's wife, Jan, told Newshub in a statement.
"We would like to thank everyone involved in returning Nick back to us. Our thoughts and love are with Steve's family and we would appreciate privacy over this time."
Bad weather conditions last week meant it was too difficult for the cargo ship to recover Mr Saull's body during its rescue operation.
Newshub.
