Carnarvon Marine Rescue and Australian Maritime Safety Authority rescue two men after wave smashes boat

Not even experienced seafarers would attempt a crossing in conditions that a four-person crew did off the Gascoyne coast on Sunday, leaving two of their members with broken bones, according to Carnarvon Marine Rescue’s commander. Two men were seriously injured after a freak wave hit their 7.8 metre vessel. It is believed they suffered broken legs as they were attempting to cross between Dorre Island and Bernier Island. They set off an emergency beacon about 9am on Sunday, with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) co-ordinating a rescue. With the help of Carnarvon Marine Rescue, the two injured men were winched into a helicopter from the rescue point off Dorre Island, 55km south-west of Carnarvon. Carnarvon Marine Rescue commander Noel Gaitskell said the rescue vessel was unable to transport the men due to the severity of their injuries. “We couldn’t transport them back because the size of the swell would cause them so much pain,” he said. The swell was around 2.5m, with highly dangerous white water between the islands. “These conditions were expected, they tried to shoot through the passage between the two islands, in my opinion I wouldn’t do it,” Mr Gaitskell said. “They managed to get back into Disaster Cove on the eastern side of the island.” Mr Gaitskell said the group was lucky the AMSA Challenger Jet was available from Exmouth. He said the crew in need of rescue lost communication due to the conditions and the AMSA Challenger jet from Perth relayed messages during the operation. The two injured men flown to Royal Perth Hospital are believed to be from Mandurah, and wouldn’t have local knowledge of the ocean. The other two uninjured crew members, with assistance from Carnarvon Volunteer Marine Rescue, returned the 7.8 metre vessel to land. Mr Gaitskell said he was astounded by the rescue chopper crew’s performance and skills in such treacherous conditions. “I have to take my hat off to the helicopter crew — how they can hover over every time with a successful rescue,” he said.