Father and son rescued from capsized boat
They were brought to shore at Vetchies Pier and their boat was towed back to shore.
A FATHER (52) and his 10-year-old son were rescued by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) duty crew after their small boat capsized off-shore of the Bluff on Saturday, 5 March.
The duty crew who quickly responded found the duo clutching onto the upturned hull of their 3.2 metre skivvy boat. Both were rescued and found with no injuries. They were brought to shore at Vetchies Pier and their boat was towed back to shore.
According to NSRI, it appears the rope entangled around the boat’s motor and while they tried to untangle it, the boat capsized.
Due to quick thinking, they also managed to recover their kit and were able to call sea rescue for help.
Bluff resident, Janine East who was watching from the balcony said her and her husband was alerted by a friend, Clayton Rawlins who saw the capsized boat. “We immediately contacted NSRI and kept an eye out for them, when they arrived, they were going out too far, so I called and directed them to the boat. It was very emotional, I had tears streaming down my face when They were waving the rescue blanket. They were unaware that we had called for help. We had mirrors trying to reflect to them that we knew they were there,” said East.
Clayton Rawlins, a Bluff diver, said he was sitting outside his house when he saw the boat overturn. Aware of what trouble the father and son could get into, he contacted the right authorities. “They were fishing and their catch was attracting sharks. According to the father who is also a diver, he had to cut the fish loose to disperse the sharks. The incident has left his son a bit shaken up but they’re ok,” said Rawlins.
According to Rawlins, the boat was far off shore and wasn’t sure it was a boat until they started shooting flares.
