Sailing Crew Rescued After A Giant Whale Sank 44 Foot Boat In The Pacific Ocean

Rick Rodriguez and his three friends from Tavernier, Florida, spent 10 hours on a lifeboat and dinghy after a giant whale sank their sailboat, the 44ft Raindancer, in the Pacific Ocean.

This had been on a planned three-week sailing excursion from the Galápagos Islands to French Polynesia when disaster struck at 1.30 pm on 13 March.

After hearing a loud noise, Rodriguez and his crew were thrown by the large impact and, with their boating experience, quickly took action – calling a mayday on the VHF radio and dispatching an emergency position indicating radio beacon.

The Peruvian coast guard picked up the distress signal and notified a US Coast Guard station in California, alerting Tommy Joyce, who was sailing 180 miles behind Rodriguez’s group.

Soon after, Geoff Stone picked up one of Rodney’s mayday calls from a friend and coordinated their rescue with Joyce and Peruvian officials aboard his 45ft boat Rolling Stones.

Though safe onboard Rolling Stones now, Rodriguez is still missing his beloved Raindancer – the boat he had retrofitted for their voyage. They are expected to reach French Polynesia on Wednesday.

Source: Insider, The Guardian

Sailing Crew Rescued After A Giant Whale Sank 44 Foot Boat In The Pacific Ocean appeared first on Marine Insight – The Maritime Industry Guide

Source: Maritime Shipping News