Stories
June 24, 2026
An off-road adventure motorcycle trip to Cape Reinga in May quickly turned into a life-changing rescue for Auckland man Keagan when a devastating crash on Ninety Mile Beach left him seriously injured and unconscious.
Keagan and a friend had spent weeks planning their motorcycle journey north. After camping at Uretiti Beach the night before, the pair rode to Ninety Mile Beach where they set off on their bikes, navigating wet conditions and strong winds.
“We’d been riding for about half an hour,” recalls Keagan. “The next thing I remember was waking up on the ground.”
Unknown to him at the time, hidden washouts on the beach had been disguised by blowing sand. His friend, riding behind him, saw Keagan’s off-road motorcycle launched into the air before crashing heavily onto the hard, packed sand.
The impact was severe. Keagan’s helmet shattered, he suffered a collapsed lung, multiple fractures to his arm, wrist and shoulder, and was knocked unconscious for around 25 minutes.
Despite having satellite calling capability on their phones, repeated attempts to contact emergency services failed. Messages dropped out and location coordinates were incorrectly placing them in the ocean. Keagan’s friend took about 45 minutes to get help organised.
As the tide slowly crept closer, his friend was preparing to drag him further up the beach to safety when the welcome sound of helicopter finally arrived overhead.
“I remember hearing the helicopter coming in,” says Keagan. “That was a huge relief.”
Given the remote location and seriousness of his injuries, the Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter crew quickly loaded Keagan on board before flying him to a safer landing site for assessment and treatment. He was then airlifted to Whangārei Hospital, where scans revealed the full extent of his injuries.
After a week in hospital, Keagan was transferred to Middlemore Hospital for surgery, where specialists inserted plates and pins to repair his arm, wrist and shoulder.
Now continuing his recovery at home in Auckland, Keagan is focused on regaining movement and strength through rehabilitation.
“The chopper service was amazing,” he says. “In a country like New Zealand, with so many remote places, it’s absolutely essential. Distances might not look far on a map, but they can take a long time to reach by road. The rescue helicopter service is something we really need.”
For Keagan, the outcome could have been very different without the rapid response of the rescue helicopter crew.
“The support was incredible,” he says. “I’m very thankful they were there when we needed them.”
We wish Keagan all the very best with his recovery.
The Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter relies heavily on community support to remain ready for missions like Keagan’s. Every donation helps ensure crews can continue reaching patients in some of New Zealand’s most remote and challenging locations when every minute counts.
