Missing

This comes after a blue and white T-shirt was found during the search for a missing Tongan pastor who went missing at a South Canterbury river mouth on December 30.

Lionati Fotofili was reported missing at the mouth of the Ōpihi River after he did not return home from a fishing trip the night before reports Kaniva News.

The family of the 44-year-old father of two are launching their own intensive search party, about more than a week after he was last seen. 

Mirza Ali Ahmadi and his wife Suraya found themselves and their five children on Aug. 19 in a chaotic crowd outside the gates of the Kabul airport in Afghanistan when a U.S soldier, from over the tall fence, asked if they needed help.

Fearing their two-month old baby Sohail would get crushed in the melee, they handed him to the soldier, thinking they would soon get to the entrance, which was only about 16 feet away.

Mr Kava, 29, of Mangere, was on a charter boat in Waitemata Harbour when he went overboard on Saturday night.

The police dive squad, eagle helicopter, coastguard and land search and rescue teams searched the sea and shore for two days.

Mr Kava's friends and family have been informed.

Mr Kava is originally from Tonga. 

Tevita Kava is originally from Tonga.

He joined others to celebrate a friend’s birthday on Saturday night when he fell off the boat in the Waitemata Harbour in Auckland.

According to a NZ Herald report, Kava’s devastated friends say another passenger also fell into the water, but was rescued, after leaning on the same barrier later in the night during a frantic search.

A full-scale search operation has been under way since police were called at 9.20pm on Saturday.