Four disintegrating and mangled vehicle wrecks have been lifted from the bed of the Whanganui River.
Divers worked in zero-visibility conditions earlier this month to find the vehicles and mark them with buoys.
Cables and chains were then attached to the chassis so they could be hoisted out of the river by crane.
The team used a jet boat and a dinghy on the water, and an ATV to reach the water’s edge.
The work took a week, but has left the stretch of river in a healthier state, Whanganui Area Commander Nigel Allan told Police's Ten One Magazine.
"The river is a spiritual and physical entity that is integral to and sustains the well-being of our communities. As police we share a community responsibility to uphold the health and wellbeing of the awa," he said.
"By helping to remove wrecks, we hope we’ve contributed in a small way to the health and wellbeing of the awa and, through this, the health and wellbeing of our communities."
For Police National Dive Squad members, the work doubled as an annual exercise to maintain and sharpen their specialist skills, enabling them to be available to deploy any day, at any hour.
"A lot of the time callouts involve grim circumstances. But this was quite a different operation,” Inspector Freda Grace said.
"It’s a beautiful awa which deserves to be healthy. Being involved both challenged the squad and allowed us all to give back."
Police, Horizons Regional Council, Whanganui District Council, Whanganui iwi, and the Department of Conservation carried out the work.
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