HAWKE'S BAY, New Zealand (30 Jan 2006) -- Andre Matthews loved to dive and loved to eat the seafood he caught. The 37-year-old died yesterday after failing to surface from diving for paua and crayfish off Pourerere Beach. Waipukurau police sergeant Denis Tatere said police were alerted about 1pm that a diver was missing and they began searching for Mr Matthews. "Rescue helicopter, two local boats and friends of the man helped in the search. The diver was found by a companion at about 3.30pm," Mr Tatere said. Mr Matthews' partner of four years, Irene Mueller, from Switzerland, stayed at their home in Haumoana yesterday to look after their six-month-old baby boy, Christian, while Andre went diving. "I worried about him sometimes because he's the kind of guy who's not scared of anything but he knew what he was doing," she said. "I wasn't worried about him yesterday." She described the father of two as a hard worker, who was always looking out for others and adored his children. Besides Christian, Mr Matthews had a second son, 10-year-old Jamie. "He was just an awesome person. A very strong person, very generous," Ms Mueller said of Mr Matthews. | | Her voice filled with emotion as she talked of her partner's love of the ocean. "He was the person who was full of energy," she said. "He loved the sea and he loved fishing and diving. He's been fishing since he was a child and he loved seafood." Mr Matthews, originally from Taupo, moved to Hawke's Bay 13 years ago. His father, Bill Matthews, can remember vividly how excited his son was when he caught his first fish. "He was eight and he ran around showing everyone," he said. Bill Matthews said he and his son had dived and fished together from when Andre was young and they had continued to do so after the move to Hawke's Bay. "He just took to the water and he was such a strong swimmer," he said of his son. "He was full of life and and he just couldn't do enough things." Andre's death was devastating because he had loved helping people and now he wouldn't be able to. SOURCE - Hawke's Bay TodaySCUBA FORUMDISCUSS THIS TOPIC - Dive in and have your say at Scuba Forum |
