Four sailors on an Australian-flagged vessel have been rescued after the boat hit a whale 250 nautical miles North of Norfolk Island yesterday.
Maritime New Zealand's Rescue Coordination Centre (RCCNZ) operations manager Mike Clulow said crews received an alert from an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon from the 51ft Australian yacht Tai Tam around 1pm on Saturday.
"It was taking on water and began sinking after reporting it had struck a whale," he said.
"The yacht was experiencing seas of up to 2m, and a Royal New Zealand Airforce P-8A Poseidon was tasked with assisting. Several vessels were in the area and diverted to assist.
Clulow said the four sailors on the vessel had to abandon the ship and spent several hours in a life raft before being rescued around 6am today by the crew of the MV SOFRANA SURVILLE, a 143m cargo vessel who was first on the scene.
"The crew of the yacht did all the right things, and it was unfortunate to have struck a whale in open water," he said.
"They were well prepared and the early activation of their EPIRB was key to helping get them to safety. It is an excellent reminder that being prepared when going to sea can save your life."
He thanked all rescue agencies involved in the "well-coordinated and executed rescue".
The crew were now safe onboard the MV SOFRANA SURVILLE and were being taken to the nearest port to disembark.
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