Sinking boat prompts dawn rescue
Saturday April 10, 2021. 2.30am, Parker Reef, 88km north-east of Mackay.
“We woke to the sound of ankle-deep water sloshing in the cabin of our boat.
“We woke the rest of the crew on board, there were four of us in total and realised suddenly we were in significant danger of sinking. The bilge pumps were working at some point, but then not at others, and unfortunately, we were unable to find where the water was coming from. The inboard motor was filling up with water as well so we tried motoring in an attempt to drain some water out without any success.
“Once the water got into the air intake the motor failed completely. We started bailing the water out at this point and decided to set of our EPIRB. We also attempted mayday calls on the radio but got no response.
“It was very dark and I remember praying for the dawn to come. The darkness definitely added to the fear we felt.
“We kept busy with bailing for three hours to an attempt to stay afloat, but just as the dawn was breaking we heard the sound of a helicopter approaching. It was heading straight for us! Then it veered to the left and we thought they hadn’t spotted us so we decided to set off a flare. They then turned and headed straight for us again. The sense of relief at that point was just incredible!
“The RACQ CQ Rescue rescue crewman Arno was winched down into the water to retrieve us one at a time. We had to jump off the boat and swim towards Arno to be secured into the vest. It was right on dawn and I can remember thinking that of all the times to be jumping into the water, this had to be the absolute worst. We had caught lots of sharks at Parker’s Reef before, big ones too!
“But I went first and Arno was already in the water waiting for me, signaling me to jump in and swim to him. I thought if he can do it, then so can I. It’s not really like there was another option.
“The water from the chopper was whipping my face so hard it feels like you could drown with your head above water. As I was winched up we started spinning. I really felt like I could have passed out at that point, so just tried to close my eyes and waited for it to be over.
“The CQ Rescue crew were absolutely awesome. They were all very calm and clear with their direction, a lot of which were hand signals as the chopper is so loud! You can tell they are incredibly well trained and really practise what they do. They made it all seem so easy.
“The whole experience really seemed surreal at the time. Once the four of us were all on board the chopper we were checked for injuries and began the flight back to base at Mackay Airport. I’ve never been in a helicopter before. The day was dawning and it was going to be a beautiful day out there. The view was spectacular from the chopper but under no circumstances would I wish that experience on anyone!
“We all have recovered well enough. It actually seemed more traumatic afterwards than what it was at the time.
“This rescue helicopter service is incredibly important to this community. Mackay has a big population of recreational boaties and you just never know when you might end up in trouble at sea. We feel like we are responsible and maintained our boat well, but you just can’t predict what might happen.
“I am incredibly grateful for RACQ CQ Rescue and I don’t know where we would be without them. They do amazing work all over the region, not just over the water, and I think they deserve all the support they can get.
“They really are true-blue lifesavers.”
VANESSA PAGE, Mackay.
