It was reported on the 12th of March 2012 that a day's fishing for five Victorians almost ended in tragedy off Port Stephens on the 6th of March when their 8 meter vessel was overturned by a rogue wave as they headed back to port in the afternoon.  The men spent a couple of hours in the water hanging onto the upturned vessel until rescue helicopters arrived and plucked them out of the rough sea.  Search and Rescue Authorities were alerted to the distress after the quick thinking skipper of the vessel activated the EPIRB on board.

According to the Newcastle Herald the skipper is being praised as a hero after his quick thinking saved the lives of two of his fishing mates and alerted the authorities to the boat’s whereabouts. He told the Newcastle Herald that while treading water in the boat’s hull he grabbed a distress beacon and life jacket then tied a piece of rope to a chair before swimming to the surface.  ‘‘Without the EPIRB (emergency distress beacon) we were gone,’’ he said.  ‘‘I managed to tie a rope to the boat and that way two men could cling to the rope while the rest of us hung onto the boat’s motor.  ‘‘Without that rope those two would have floated away.’’

The Westpac Helicopter picked up 4 of the men whilst an RAAF search and rescue Helicopter saved the 5th. All men were transported to John Hunter Hospital and discharged at about 7:30pm that evening.

What a great tale of quick thinking in the moment of crisis and planning ahead before leaving port! I, personally have always thought it was smart to be sure always to have an EPIRB on board any time you set out with your vessel. Of course, it doesn't hurt to be sure to have one of the GPS chartplotters along, too, to keep you on course in the first place. Well, that's just one of my personal soap boxes, but the above story really shows the validity of safety first thinking. What a smart skipper, and one to certainly be commended. Well done.