FED:Stricken yachtsman rescued off WA coast

AAP General News (Australia)
08-02-2011
FED:Stricken yachtsman rescued off WA coast

MELBOURNE, Aug 2 AAP - A 62-year-old lone yachtsman has been rescued after getting
into difficulties in wild weather off the West Australian coast.

The Canadian was forced to abandon his yacht after its engine broke free of its mounting
in a heavy swell and high winds in the Southern Ocean late on Monday.

A search and rescue helicopter dropped off a radio and an extra liferaft to the yachtsman
as he waited for assistance from a Panama-registered bulk carrier, the Kohju.

The carrier arrived 140 nautical miles southwest of Cape Leeuwin off the West Australian
coast about 12.50am (AEST) on Tuesday and rescued the yachtsman from his 9.5-metre vessel,

Kekuli.

An Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) spokeswoman said because of the difficulty
of manoeuvering in heavy seas, it took around six hours to get the yachtsman safely on
board the carrier.

"The yacht was abandoned because it was not in good condition and was starting to sink,"

the spokeswoman said.

The bulk carrier is continuing to its original destination of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands.

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KEYWORD: YACHT

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