Three men are ‘lucky to be alive’ after their 12 metre cabin cruiser sunk off the coast of Augusta on Wednesday, January 17.
Augusta Volunteer Marine Rescue received a call about 1pm when an unregistered EPIRB had been set off.
Volunteer crewmen Dave Martin, Keith Macaulay and Phil Tubb set out on the rescue boat as soon as they could.
Mr Tubb said while there wasn’t a big swell it was very choppy and prevented their boat from going faster than 20 knots.
The rescue boat has the capacity to go more than 50 knots.
A rescue helicopter and fixed wing jet had also been deployed to the area as a result of the EPIRB.
It took the rescue boat nearly an hour to reach the destination which was around 26 kilometres south east.
Mr Tubb said even with the helicopter hovering over where the men were, it took a long time for the Augusta rescue team to see them.
“I thought, where the hell was the boat?” he said.
Mr Tubb said ‘you had to be there’ to see the three men on a tiny lifeboat that was taking on water.
He said the cabin cruiser sunk so fast that the men only managed to get the EPIRB and life jackets.
It was ‘lucky’ for the men that the straps holding the inflatable life boat to the roof broke away before the cruiser sunk.
Mr Tubb said the men were shocked, wet and cold, but other than that they were fine.
“They were just so so lucky that everything fell into place,” he said.
The men were believed to be on a trip from Mandurah to Bremer Bay.
Jemillah Dawson
I started as a journalist in 2011 and now manage mastheads in the South West of WA. My passion is politics and sport. I believe we are the voice for the community but also we inform the community of what they need to know. Email jemillah.dawson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
I started as a journalist in 2011 and now manage mastheads in the South West of WA. My passion is politics and sport. I believe we are the voice for the community but also we inform the community of what they need to know. Email jemillah.dawson@austcommunitymedia.com.au
