Latest news with #Cairns-based
Herald Sun
12-05-2025
- General
- Herald Sun
Sailors rescued from sinking yacht in Coral Sea, 350km east of Brisbane
Don't miss out on the headlines from National. Followed categories will be added to My News. Three sailors have been saved from a sinking yacht hundreds of kilometres off the Queensland coast. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) from QLD and Victoria, NSW Police, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and a cargo vessel all responded to help the three crew members, who issued a distress signal about 7am on Sunday. Their 17m yacht was at risk of sinking in the Coral Sea about 350km east of Brisbane after it took on water and experienced electrical problems. The crew used a satellite emergency notification device to alert AMSA. An AMSA spokesman said the agency deployed the Essendon and Cairns-based Challenger rescue aircraft, which arrived at the yacht's location at 10am and 11.30am. The aircraft dropped two life rafts, communication equipment and a dewatering pump to the yacht. Cargo vessel Darya Nitya was nearby and responded to AMSA's request for assistance, arriving about 5pm. NSW Police boat Nemesis arrived at 6.45pm and rescued all three crew members. An ADF aircraft provided communication support while the rescue was underway. 'This incident is a strong reminder of the importance of carrying a suitable distress beacon while offshore — it may save your life,' an AMSA spokesman said. Originally published as Three sailors rescued from sinking yacht in Coral Sea, 350km east of Brisbane
Sky News AU
12-05-2025
- General
- Sky News AU
Sailors rescued from sinking yacht in Coral Sea, 350km east of Brisbane
Three sailors have been saved from a sinking yacht hundreds of kilometres off the Queensland coast. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) from QLD and Victoria, NSW Police, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and a cargo vessel all responded to help the three crew members, who issued a distress signal about 7am on Sunday. Their 17m yacht was at risk of sinking in the Coral Sea about 350km east of Brisbane after it took on water and experienced electrical problems. The crew used a satellite emergency notification device to alert AMSA. An AMSA spokesman said the agency deployed the Essendon and Cairns-based Challenger rescue aircraft, which arrived at the yacht's location at 10am and 11.30am. The aircraft dropped two life rafts, communication equipment and a dewatering pump to the yacht. Cargo vessel Darya Nitya was nearby and responded to AMSA's request for assistance, arriving about 5pm. NSW Police boat Nemesis arrived at 6.45pm and rescued all three crew members. An ADF aircraft provided communication support while the rescue was underway. 'This incident is a strong reminder of the importance of carrying a suitable distress beacon while offshore — it may save your life,' an AMSA spokesman said. Originally published as Three sailors rescued from sinking yacht in Coral Sea, 350km east of Brisbane
Perth Now
12-05-2025
- General
- Perth Now
Incredible rescue of three sailors at sea
Three sailors have been saved from a sinking yacht hundreds of kilometres off the Queensland coast. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) from QLD and Victoria, NSW Police, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and a cargo vessel all responded to help the three crew members, who issued a distress signal about 7am on Sunday. Their 17m yacht was at risk of sinking in the Coral Sea about 350km east of Brisbane after it took on water and experienced electrical problems. Three people have been rescued from a sinking yacht about 350km east of Brisbane. NewsWire Credit: NewsWire The crew used a satellite emergency notification device to alert AMSA. An AMSA spokesman said the agency deployed the Essendon and Cairns-based Challenger rescue aircraft, which arrived at the yacht's location at 10am and 11.30am. The aircraft dropped two life rafts, communication equipment and a dewatering pump to the yacht. Cargo vessel Darya Nitya was nearby and responded to AMSA's request for assistance, arriving about 5pm. Three people have been rescued from a sinking yacht about 350km east of Brisbane. NewsWire Credit: NewsWire NSW Police boat Nemesis arrived at 6.45pm and rescued all three crew members. An ADF aircraft provided communication support while the rescue was underway. 'This incident is a strong reminder of the importance of carrying a suitable distress beacon while offshore — it may save your life,' an AMSA spokesman said.
ABC News
30-04-2025
- General
- ABC News
Sailors rescued twice in a week after running aground on Calder Island
Two sailors have been rescued from a crevice in a cliff-face after their sailing boat smashed into rocks on an uninhabited island off the Queensland coast. The man and woman were retrieved from Calder Island, 55 nautical miles north-east of Mackay, after they activated their EPIRB at 2:30am on Wednesday. The CQ Rescue helicopter was used to conduct an aerial search and located the pair within two hours of the distress call being issued. Pilot Leigh Wilkinson said powerful wind and low visibility made it a challenging operation. "Those conditions made locating the people difficult," he said. " The vessel had wedged in a small inlet up against a vertical rock ledge. " David Ugrinic of Marine Rescue Queensland (MRQ) said the chopper was unable to winch the couple to safety "due to the proximity of the cliff face". "I believe they were awoken when they struck the rock and then they put their life jackets on and abandoned the vessel," Mr Ugrinic said. Two MRQ crew members used a tender boat to travel roughly 50 metres to shore while being guided by the light of the helicopter. "The island is rocky and has fringing reefs," Mr Ugrinic said. "It was at low tide, so the water was only about a foot deep and they could motor up and pull the tender up onto the island." The helicopter remained in the air until the volunteers below safely retrieved the man and woman. "When our crew got there they radioed to say the man was quite confused and he was also very cold, almost hypothermic," Mr Ugrinic said. He said the man, 71, and the woman in her 60s had purchased the second-hand, 9.8-metre fibreglass boat from Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast and were on their way home to Bowen. They told the rescuers the vessel was uninsured. They were taken to Mackay Base Hospital with cuts and hypothermia and released after treatment in the emergency department. The boat's sails became tangled earlier this week, prompting a rescue mission. ( Supplied: Marine Rescue Queensland ) Second rescue for pair It was the second time this week emergency services came to the aid of the pair. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) reported that a distress beacon was activated at 5:30pm on Monday and that the Cairns-based Challenger jet located the boat 100 kilometres south-east of Mackay. "These incidents highlight the importance of always carrying a distress beacon on the water — it can save your life," an AMSA spokesperson said. Mr Ugrinic said the jet circled the drifting boat near Sphinx Island until the MRQ vessel arrived. Volunteers helped to untangle the sails on the couple's boat earlier in the week. ( Supplied: Marine Rescue Queensland ) He said the boat's sails had become tangled and wrapped around the main mast. "They could not manoeuvre, so it was pretty much dead in the water," Mr Ugrinic said. " He was also unable to anchor because he either had no anchor or it was too short. " Marine rescue volunteers used an extendable pole to untangle the sails. Mr Ugrinic said the man was an experienced sailor and declined to be towed back to shore to have his motor repaired. He said rescuers did not like to leave anyone with ongoing problems, but they could not force the couple to have the boat towed.
The Guardian
09-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
LNP candidate in critical Queensland seat apologises after controversial posts on China and ‘feminists' resurface
A Liberal-National candidate in a must-win Queensland seat has apologised after social media posts airing controversial views about China, Covid-19 restrictions and 'feminists' who helped 'kick out' Donald Trump in 2020 resurfaced. In the latest candidate controversy to hit Peter Dutton's campaign, the online history of his Leichhardt candidate Jeremy Neal was brought to light on Wednesday. Neal is in a fight to retain the Cairns-based seat as Labor attempts to capitalise on the retirement of veteran Liberal MP Warren Entsch. A dossier of now-deleted social media posts revealed by the Courier Mail showed Neal – a paramedic – railed against China, Covid-19 lockdowns and Daniel Andrews' Victorian government during the first two years of the pandemic. 'We're isolating ourselves into poverty' #covid19australia #lockdownextension #BoycottChina,' Neal wrote on Twitter, now X, in July 2020. In another post, Neal described Victoria as a 'facist state' that would have made [Italian dictator Benito] Mussolini 'proud'. Neal labelled China a 'grub of a country' in November 2020, after a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman posted a fake picture depicting an Australian soldier murdering an Afghan child. In a statement, Neal apologised for the 'poorly worded' posts. 'The posts in question, which have long been deleted, were poorly worded and I unreservedly apologise for them,' he said. 'The majority of these were posted in the midst of the Covid pandemic when I was working on the frontline as a paramedic, attending some extremely traumatic incidents in my community. 'These experiences had a profound impact on me at the time.' Neal's enthusiastic support for Donald Trump is also in the spotlight, aiding Labor as it attempts to tie Peter Dutton to the US president. Images from Neal's campaign launch on 6 April – three days after Trump announced his 10% global tariffs – captured supporters wearing Maga-themed hats with the slogan 'Make Albo go away'. Trump also featured in the dossier of resurfaced tweets, with Neal posting in August 2021 that 'feminists helped kick Trump out only to ruin~19000000 women's lives in #Afghanistan under #Biden'. In his Wednesday statement, Neal said: 'I share Peter Dutton's concerns over President Trump's tariffs, particularly the impact they will have on our local beef industry.' The emergence of the Neal's posts comes after the NSW Liberal Party dumped Whitlam candidate Ben Britton after Guardian Australia revealed a string of controversial views on fringe podcasts, including that women should be barred from frontline roles in the military. Britton was replaced by former state MP Nathaniel Smith, who once claimed school students were being brainwashed by Marxist and woke ideologies. The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, described Neal's social media posts as 'extraordinary'. 'I don't know where [the Coalition] are getting these … candidates from.'
