Waikato is getting back its rescue jetskis that were parked up by Fire and Emergency (FENZ) last year sparking a public outcry.

Locals warned someone would drown as a result of FENZ saying local volunteers were no longer allowed to use motorised boats because it was too risky.

A request by the Cambridge brigade over jetskis it wanted to deploy with local fundraising is understood to have triggered what became a national directive from Wellington fire commanders, that only trained firefighters in rafts were allowed to do water rescues.

RNZ revealed this last October prompting online comments such as, "Huntly ... had a really good water rescue unit until FENZ Numpties banned it."

But now a group separate from FENZ is being set up to run jetski rescues on the Waikato River covering volunteers from all three local brigades - Huntly, Ngārauwāhia and Cambridge.

"It's looking positive and we are hoping to get back on the river pretty soon," Huntly brigade chief Kerry Holland told RNZ on Thursday.

This looks like it would be finalised in a meeting next week.

FENZ chief executive Kerry Gregory had been grilled by MPs earlier this year about taking a hard line on motorised water rescues, which he defended by saying this fell outside what they were funded for, trained for or had set health and safety standards around.

This suggests the new move in Waikato depends on FENZ not being in charge. RNZ expects to get more details from FENZ later on Friday.

The jetskis came up again at Parliament on Monday this week - when Gregory was able to deliver different news to a select committee inquiry looking into fire truck fleet problems.

National MP Tim Costley had asked if some local brigades felt they needed to "hide" trucks or jetskis they had bought themselves with local fundraising.

"Because when we had the annual review hearing [in January], I know there was a large discussion around jetskis, swift water rescue, but are brigades, where the brigade owns something, whether it's an appliance, a jet ski, a buggy, or whatever it might be, are they able to use it or are they going to have that taken off them?" asked Costley.

Gregory replied: "Yeah, so if I just start on the jetskis, and it's good to be in a position now where Ngārauwāhia and Huntly, which were the ones with the jet skis ... have decided to make up a separate entity - that's a local solution to a local issue."