The skipper of the rescue vessel that saved two men whose boat sank 8nm offshore from Nambucca on Wednesday morning (August 5) has described the pair as “dead lucky”.
“They were a long way out and the wind had just started to get up so there were a few white caps around. Another hour or so and it might have been pretty rough out there,” Marine Rescue Trial Bay member Peter Holyfield said.
“They were dead lucky. They had lifejackets on and two EPIRBs tied to their wrists and we got out there pretty quickly.”
Mr Holyfield and crew members Rob Young, Rob Hose and Dave Meani, responded on rescue vessel Trial Bay 30, with vessels from Marine Rescue Nambucca, Marine Rescue Coffs Harbour, the NSW Police Force vessel Fearless and the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter also responding.
Mr Holyfield said the men, one in his 40s and one in his 70s, had told the rescue crew that their boat had split, suddenly turning over and sinking in about 30 seconds.
“They rang a mate who was a pro fisherman and gave him the coordinates and he phoned them through to the base. We got to the original coordinates within about half an hour but they’d changed.
“We searched around the area and one of the guys on board spotted something yellow. I thought it might be a wave buoy but then we realised it was the two guys hanging on to each other in their lifejackets.
“Mr Holyfield said one of the men had gone into shock, with the crew administering oxygen on the return journey to South West Rocks, where a NSW Ambulance was waiting to transport the pair to Kempsey Hospital to be checked.
While a small amount of the men’s gear was recovered, one of their EPIRBs sank, along with their boat and phones.
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