March 30th 2023.
A courageous couple and their beloved pet dog had to swim to safety after their yacht encountered trouble north of Perth. They were on a 6.7-metre yacht near Little Island at Hillary's around 10pm yesterday when they hit a reef and became stuck on rocks. The shallow waters posed a challenge for rescuers, who were told the conditions were "shallow and a bit gnarly".
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Marine Rescue Whitfords' Neil Harrison said, “We couldn’t approach the yacht close enough to get them off, so they had to abandon ship.” The trio was encouraged to turn on their Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) and put on their life jackets before jumping into the water. Then, with the help of the police air wing, they swam 250 metres in the dark to the marine rescue boat.
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Harrison said, “They were exhausted when they reached the side of our boat,” but fortunately, the couple and their dog were unharmed. Emergency services remarked that the couple had been well-prepared, which made all the difference. Harrison said, “They had all the right equipment, and when they got into the water, they knew what to do. Plus, the dog having a life jacket was a bit unusual, but would have likely saved its life.”
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The couple had been planning to reach Hillary's for the night on their way to Rockingham, but lost their way in the dark. Now, their challenge is to retrieve the boat from the shallow water. Harrison said, “There’s about 500 or 600 metres of reef which is 6 inches underwater, which you can’t generally see.”
The couple's daughters have expressed their appreciation for the work of emergency services in helping their family reach safety. Sign up here to receive our daily newsletters and breaking news alerts, sent straight to your inbox.
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