Shipwrecked fishermen safe

Press, 31 July 1984, Page 1

Shipwrecked fishermen safe

Two men in a liferaft were rescued by a fishing boat after their own fishing vessel hit a rock and sank off the Chatham Islands yesterday. Mr Jimmy King, of Owenga, the owner of the fishing boat, and Mr Leon Goomes, of Kaiangaroa, were the only people on board the vessel, the Challenge, which struck the Sisters Rocks, 25km north of the Chathams, about 11.30 a.m.

Mr King said last that he and Mr Goomes had been fishing for cod in the 15m vessel, which he has owned for about three years. He said he heard the rock hit the wooden vessel about midships and found water pouring into the freezer. “I got hold of Waitangi radio and they got help. I didn’t really think it was that bad. I thought we would make shore quite quickly,” Mr King said from his home in the Chatham Islands last evening. However, the two men were forced the leave the

boat about an hour after hitting the rock. They climbed into a liferaft and waited to be rescued. The seas “weren’t too bad” and the skies were overcast as they waited for their rescuers. Mr King said he was not concerned for their safety. The sinking vessel had earlier been spotted by the crew of an R.N.Z.A.F. Orion on a routine resource patrol in the area. The aircraft’s captain, Squadron Leader John Cotton, said that the Orion had first seen the vessel manoeuvring round the Sisters, in no apparent difficulty at that stage.

But about 15 minutes later, as the aircraft moved round the southern coast of the Chathams, it received a call from Chatham Radio saying the vessel was in distress. “We made a dash across there and as we approached the vessel, it was upright in the water,* with the two occupants getting into the dinghy,” said Squadron Leader Cotton.

The pair had been in their rubber raft for only about five minutes when Challenge capsized, remaining on its side for three minutes before sinking. Chatham Radio then told the Orion that another fishing vessel, the Skirmish 3, was coming to help and was

about 45 minutes away. To help guide the Skirmish 3, the Orion dropped a longburning smoke marker with an electronic beacon into the sea near the dinghy.

The Skirmish 3 arrived about 12.15 p.m. picked up the pair, safe and well and took them to Kaiangaroa where they arrived about 5 p.m.

Mr King, who is in his early 30s, has been fishing for 18 or 19 years. He said he had been in the area of the Sisters Rocks about three or four times before. He said that if he had been in a steel-hulled vessel the impact of the rock might not have caused so much damage. He said that he had been frightened when he first heard the Orion because he could hear the aircraft but not see it and did not know what was making the noise. “It just stayed with us, and guided the other boat to us,” Mr King said.

The water where the boat sank was about 40 fathoms deep, he said. He said he hoped he was insured and would be talking to his insurance company today to discuss the sinking and the possibility of salvaging the vessel. He said he would have to think about whether he would go back to fishing after this incident. “It caused a bit of excitement.” he said.