Two Rescued from Overturned Yacht off Cairns

The crew of Australian Border Force Cutter (ABFC) Storm Bay have rescued two people from the water after their yacht capsized off Cairns.

Shortly after leaving Cairns on patrol on Sunday 4 December 2016, ABFC Storm Bay received a request from Cairns Vessel Traffic System to respond to reports of a vessel in distress approximately 1.2 nautical miles off Machans Beach.

ABFC Storm Bay, operating under Maritime Border Command (MBC), a multi-agency taskforce within the Australian Border Force (ABF), arrived a short time later and located the overturned 12 foot sailing trimaran yacht, and two people in the water.

MBC officers deployed the ship’s boat and provided the couple with life jackets before removing them from the water.

The pair were in a state of exhaustion and quite distressed. They were cared for on board ABFC Storm Bay before being transferred to a Cairns Coast Guard vessel to be taken back to shore. Despite their ordeal, they appeared to be in good health.

Commander MBC, Rear Admiral Peter Laver, praised the efforts of the ABFC Storm Bay crew.

“This is the second time this year ABFC Storm Bay has successfully completed a rescue off Cairns. Once again, the quick response of our maritime officers has prevented a serious incident escalating to something far worse.”

“The presence of our MBC vessels in Australia’s northern waters means we are not only well placed to respond to civil maritime security threats, but also stand ready to aid in these rescues when needed.”

The vessel was later towed back to Cairns by the Coast Guard vessel.