Youngsters take high jump into sea

Daredevil young teenagers have been taking their lives in their own hands leaping into Napier's inner harbour from atop a five-metre high historic derrick which was for many years used to lift gravestones for a monumental mason.

Now a monument to its own origins on Routledge Wharf at the entrance to the Iron Pot as early as the 1870s, the frame has been scaled by at least two youngsters in recent days, egged on by other youngsters before leaping out and plunging into the water.

One perched atop the derrick's pillar for several minutes as children below counted down "10, 9, 8 ..." before leaping off, while another ventured up a few minutes, scaringly grasping the supports near the top before making a sudden plunge into the water below.

While there are some signs barring jumping into the sea from the quay, none are near the derrick,

The derrick was for about 70 years sited at Hawke's Bay Monumental Masons on the corner of Station and Munro Sts in Napier, where it was used for lifting gravestones.

It was donated to the city of Napier by owners Eugene and Jill Verschaffelt and relocated in 2010 to the fishing wharf, again near the entrance to the Iron Pot.