Stranded Kiwi yachties rescued
Four Kiwi men stranded on a remote Fijian island after their boat struck a reef have been rescued and are on their way to Suva.
The 61-foot Jungle was heading towards Tonga on Friday when it crashed into the remote TuvanaI-Ra reef, 425 kilometres southeast of Suva, the Fijian capital.
But while the crew are headed for safety, Jungle will stay where it is after being damaged beyond repair.
Wellington coffee and cafe pioneers Geoff Marsland, founder of Havana Coffee Works, and Roger Young, owner of Fidel’s Cafe and Havana Bar, were aboard the yacht, along with owner Peter McLean and his son.
A Maritime New Zealand spokesman said a Fijian navy boat found the yacht about 10.30am on Saturday.
The crew waited until high tide, about 5pm New Zealand time, before leaving the island for Suva.
The boat was initially unable to contact the men by radio, but a rescue party was dispatched in a smaller boat to an atoll where the crew of the SV Jungle were found safe and well.
They had reached the island by life raft after the yacht was damaged.
The spokesman said on Sunday the yacht was beyond repair.
‘‘The boat is so badly damaged it will be left on the reef to be broken up by the ocean.’’
An RNZAF Orion earlier located the stricken yacht and dropped a radio and fresh water to the crew.
The yacht sent out an emergency signal early on Friday morning after hitting the reef and the Orion was sent to search for it.
Messages from the yacht’s crew to relatives at about 2am said the vessel’s backstay was broken, affecting the yacht’s ability to sail, the Air Force said.
Roger Foley, who knew McLean and Marsland, said the yacht had been heading towards Tonga when it got into trouble.
The Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) that was set off usually meant a boat or life were in danger, he said.
Marsland and McLean had been boating together for decades, dating back to when Marsland as a teenager worked on fishing boats McLean ran. Waikawa Bay boat club manager Sue van Vellzen said the men were very experienced sailors who had steered the yacht from the overseas port it was brought from.
Van Vellzen said the vessel was seaworthy but the area was notorious for its uncharted reefs.
‘‘You’re miles from land, totally in the open ocean and very exposed – it can be challenging.’’