UK family rescued from stricken boat in middle of Pacific Ocean
The couple and two children had been sailing in the remote Beveridge Reef, a submerged atoll in the South Pacific.
Monday 28 August 2017 09:37, UK
A British family has been rescued from a stricken yacht in the middle of the South Pacific after it ran aground on a coral reef hundreds of miles from land.
The couple and their two children had been sailing through the remote Beveridge Reef, 400km (250 miles) southeast of the island of Niue, when their 15m catamaran ran aground.
An emergency radio call was put out at 2.30am local time and was picked up by the ketch sailboat Dona Catharina, which happened to be carrying out whale research nearby.
The ship's skipper answered the call within seven minutes.
When they reached the catamaran, it was taking on water but was well aground on the reef, according to the Rescue Coordination Centre of New Zealand.
After waiting a few hours until daylight, the rescue crew were able to take a dinghy to collect the family.
There had been no other vessels in the vicinity.
Senior search and rescue officer Geoff Lunt said the catamaran is likely to break up on the reef.
He added that the family are currently "comfortable onboard the ketch, within the safety of the lagoon".
"We would like to thank the crew of the ketch and all the rescue services involved in tracking vessel locations and successfully rescuing this family," he said.
The group is to sail to Niue in the next few days.