Thursday, 28 January 2021, 12:57 pm Despite being in lockdown for part of 2020 New Zealand’s provisional drowning toll is only just below the five year average. The provisional preventable* drowning toll for 2020 is 74 (the five year average 2015 -2019 is 81). Drowning is the leading cause of recreational death and the third highest cause of accidental death in New Zealand. “Every one of these preventable fatalities leaves a family and a community devastated,” says spokesperson Sheridan Bruce. The COVID-19 level 4 lockdown ran between March 25 and April 27 with boaties ordered out of the water until level 2 on May 13. In 2020 Boating/Paddling fatalities are down at 10 from 19 in 2019, noting however that there’s also been a large increase in water related recreational sales as New Zealanders flocked to the water and enjoyed domestic tourism.