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Christel Yardley / Stuff
Family and friends reunite after a teenager went missing in the Waikato River at Wellington St Beach in Hamilton.
The body of a teenager who disappeared while swimming in the Waikato River was found.
The 17-year-old man was reported missing at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday.
A police spokesman said he was found by the national police dive team shortly before noon on Friday.
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The police dive team was called in to search for a missing swimmer in the Waikato River.
His death will be referred to the coroner.
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Earlier, a police spokeswoman said initial information provided to police indicates that the young man had been using a swing rope.
About 20 family and friends had gathered on the Wellington Street beach before 9 a.m. Friday.
The incident follows a tragic start to the New Year for those who swim in the waters off Waikato and the Bay of Plenty.
On January 4, Four-year-old Mystique Genuine Pairama from Upper Hutt died at Lake Rotokawau in Rotorua.
The next day, 18-year-old Zion Brown of New Plymouth died after an incident with the water in Lake Arapuni.
On Wednesday, January 6, two men drowned on opposite ends of the Waikato.
A father of three, Revell Douglas, 46, died after he tried to help some children who got into trouble in the waters off Karioitahi Beach, north of Waikato.
Meanwhile, a man drowned at Two Mile Bay in Taupō earlier that afternoon.
On Thursday, January 7, Hamilton teenager Kaelah Marlow died after what is believed to be a shark attack in Bowentown, near Waihī Beach.
