Marriage plans on ice

New Zealand - It sounds like a case of cold feet.
A Dunedin couple have had to put their wedding plans on ice.

Lawyer Bridget Byers and builder Donald Wyatt planned to marry on one of the many icebergs floating off the Otago coastline on ice, the Otago daily Times reported.

The pair would take a wedding celebrant – and their crampons – by helicopter to say their I dos on one of the giant visitors from the Antarctic which have so enamoured New Zealanders for the past few weeks.

However, Southern Lakes Helicopter pilot Richard Hannibal Hayes, of Te Anau, known for his search and rescue work in the region, said plans were on hold as the job was too risky.

The slow thaw of the flotilla as the icebergs moved north meant they were constantly shedding ice, and it was difficult to find a safe haven for the lovebirds to land on.

Internal Affairs also threw cold water on the couple's plans, saying people had to be within 12 nautical miles of the coast to be married legally.

The icebergs are at least double that distance from terra firma.

Ms Byers did not wish to comment as she was in discussions with a woman's magazine over rights to cover the ceremony.