CMA CGM Ship Rescues Four After Yacht Strikes Whale in South Pacific

Four sailors have been rescued from a life raft in the South Pacific after their yacht struck a whale and began taking on water about 250 nautical miles north of Norfolk Island.

The 51-foot Australian-flagged yacht Tai Tam was abandoned Saturday after the collision, according to the New Zealand Defence Force. The four people aboard activated the vessel’s emergency position-indicating radio beacon, or EPIRB, at around 1 p.m. New Zealand time before taking to a life raft. 

The distress signal was received by Maritime New Zealand’s Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand, which tasked a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to search for the sailors.

The P-8A crew located the survivors and established two-way radio communications with them while vessels in the area were diverted toward the scene. The RNZAF operates four P-8A Poseidon aircraft for maritime surveillance and other missions, including search and rescue. 

The sailors remained in the life raft until around 6 a.m. Sunday, when they were picked up by the 143-meter cargo ship Sofrana Surville, the first merchant vessel to reach the scene. All four were safely aboard and being taken to port, according to New Zealand authorities. 

“This was a well-coordinated and executed rescue,” RCCNZ Operations Manager Mike Clulow said, thanking the New Zealand Defence Force, Australian and New Caledonian rescue authorities, Sofrana Surville and a private sailing vessel that also assisted.

Clulow said the yacht’s crew had been well prepared and credited the early activation of the EPIRB with helping rescuers locate them quickly.

“The crew of the yacht did all the right things,” he said. “It is an excellent reminder that being prepared when going to sea can save your life.”

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