MO-1995-210

On Monday, 27 November 1995 at approximately 1600 hours, during a summer white water rafting trip down the Shotover River near Queenstown a raft capsized and one of the passengers drowned. Safety issues identified included the difficulty rafting operators have in conveying the nature of white water rafting to non-English speaking passengers. It was recommended that the proposed Commercial White Water Rafting Code of Practice include a requirement for raft operators to show passengers an audio-visual summary of the demands of the rafting experience before they embark on the trip.