The crew of three enters the life raft and is rescued safe and sound by the KNRM a short time later. No one is injured. The "Mrs Jones" was on its way from Middelburg to Blankenberge at the time of the accident. According to the crew, the ship suddenly turned at 5 to 6 Beaufort.
The bow thruster was installed by an external company
"After delivery, a retractable bow thruster was retrofitted at the owner's request. This probably extended during the trip, which was the cause of the course change, and then tore off," reports the owner of the Bavaria dealer Westside Sailing in Lemmer, Thomas Thurau. He delivered the boat. "The shipyard is not to blame for the accident, it had nothing to do with the bow thruster," Thurau continues. A lot of water quickly entered through the large hole in the foredeck left by the thruster, leaving the crew with no option but to make their way to the island.
After a short time, she was rescued unharmed but in shock by the KNRM, the Dutch equivalent of the DGzRS. The salvors have since brought the wreck ashore on behalf of Rijkswaterstaat, the responsible authority. It will be further examined there. The crew and the skipper are probably not to blame; in any case, no charges have been filed.
The case is reminiscent of the Sun Odyssey 410 sunk of the Santiano violinist Pete Sage. The accident happened because the retractable bow thruster was installed incorrectly. Jeanneau then launched a recall campaign and covered the costs of the repairs.
