Media Release
18 February 2008
AMSA coordinates rescue of 4 crew off Noumea
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority coordinated the successful rescue of four Australian crew approximately 550 kilometres west of Noumea during the early hours of Sunday 17 February 2008.
AMSA’s dedicated search and rescue Dornier aircraft and a New Zealand Defence P3 Orion were able to provide top-cover over the yacht and direct the rescue ship to its exact location.
The yacht Idle Vice caught in bad weather and having lost a rudder, issued a mayday call indicating the need to abandon the vessel. A container ship, Cap Pasley was diverted to the area and the four crew members were successfully transferred to safety. The Cap Pasley is now enroute to Yokahama, Japan.
This is the second incident of a similar nature in the past week after four New Zealand sailors were successfully rescued when their catamaran took on water off the coast of Byron Bay on Thursday 14 February.
While both incidents are unfortunate, the successful rescues were greatly assisted by the appropriate carriage of safety equipment on board each vessel. The activation of registered 406 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRB) on each vessel provided authorities with an accurate location and specific details of the distressed vessels, thereby allowing the search and rescue aircraft to arrive on scene as expeditiously as possible. This in turn assisted the search and rescue aircraft in their task of directing the merchant ships to the location of the vessels and the saving of eight lives.
More information about important changes to the monitoring of EPIRB can be found at www.amsa.gov.au/beacons
Media inquiries: Tracey Jiggins 0418 164 901