Overall the behaviour of boaties on Tauranga Harbour this summer has been exceptional, with the majority being safe and following the rules, says harbourmaster Peter Buell.

Unfortunately there will always be some who choose break the rules and the recent accident at Hunters Creek shows how severe those consequences can be.

The recent incident at Hunters Creek is a timely reminder to follow the rules when in a ski lane.

At Hunters Creek, two men had to be taken ashore for medical treatment when a jet ski collided with the old ammunition barge on January 17.

They were not following the five-knot rule, where you have to travel five knots within 200m of the shore or any structure.

The barge is within the Hunters Creek ski lane, where the change of rule applies only if the boat involved is actually water skiing. The jet skiers were not water skiing, so the five knot rule applied.

'Our primary focus is education and in this instance we will not be issuing a fine or infringement notice as the safety message is already clear,” says the harbourmaster in a statement.

The men were not seriously injured, but the jet ski was written off.

The 42-year-old Auckland man driving the jet ski was initially thought to have suffered pelvic injuries when he slammed into the handlebars of the jet ski as it struck the barge. His 19-year-old passenger from Papamoa was treated and discharged for arm injuries from the contact.

As one of the few sheltered ski lanes in Tauranga harbour, Hunters Creek it is a popular spot for personal water craft, skiers and water toys. The barge wreck is located on a sandbank west of the Matakana Island ski lane, where it has been decaying for about 40 years.

It narrows the gap between the wreck and the island. Witnesses on the beach say unless everyone adheres to the 'anticlockwise” rule, keeping to the right, then problems can occur.