In distress: Sailing yacht sinks in five minutes - crew rescued by helicopter

The sailing yacht "Vlie", presumably a Bavaria 45, sank off the coast of Gran Canaria on its way from Tenerife to Gran Canaria. Skipper Kai Linnenbrügger described the incident in a Facebook post and emphasised one thing in particular: "But the most important thing is that the crew is fine!!!!" According to him, nobody was injured.

At the time of the accident, the conditions were sporty but manageable. "We were sailing heavily reefed on a half-wind course with around 30 knots of wind and a long Atlantic wave," writes Linnenbrügger. Until the incident, the trip had gone according to plan and in good spirits.

Contact with an unknown object

There had been a collision with an underwater obstacle around twelve nautical miles off Gran Canaria. "We suddenly had a noticeable contact with an unknown object in the water. We could neither recognise nor identify what it was," said the skipper. Immediately afterwards, there was a strong inrush of water. Despite immediate countermeasures, the water rose so quickly "that the boat sank within about five minutes". Under these circumstances, it was no longer possible to stabilise the boat or to steer it.

Emergency call, life raft, rescue

According to Linnenbrügger, the crew immediately made an emergency call and prepared the life raft. "The abandonment of the ship was calm, orderly and professional." All crew members were able to safely transfer to the life raft. Linnenbrügger emphasises that the alarm chain worked "flawlessly" and expressly thanks the rescue services: "The Gran Canaria sea rescue team reacted extremely professionally and quickly."

At the same time, he warns against jumping to conclusions about the cause. "We cannot confirm any further speculation about the cause at this time," writes Linnenbrügger. In his view, the fact is that massive water ingress occurred after contact with an unknown object and the boat sank very quickly.

Quick rescue

The Spanish sea rescue organisation Salvamento Marítimo also reported on the operation: five crew members of a sailing boat flying the Dutch flag were rescued after the boat sank around ten miles off the west-southwest coast of Cabo Descojonado (Gran Canaria). The coordination centre in Las Palmas immediately activated the Salvamar Macondo units and the Helimer 215 helicopter. The helicopter located the life raft, picked up the castaways and took them to Dr Negrín Hospital; they were "apparently in good condition". Salvamento Marítimo describes the weather conditions as complicated, with winds of 30 to 35 knots.

The Salvamar Macondo subsequently recovered the life raft and the radio, according to the statement. No ship remains or signs of pollution were found in the area.

Kai Linnenbrügger and his endeavours

Kai Linnenbrügger appears publicly as a skipper and organiser of sailing projects. Linnenbrügger is also known as the founder and operator of 45°Nord, a provider of yacht charter and practice-orientated sailing and skipper training. There he accompanies trips and training courses as the responsible skipper and instructor, including in formats that focus on safety, manoeuvring and handling yachts in challenging conditions. His name also appears in media formats relating to travelling and sailing, including in connection with the WDR series "Lecker an Bord", in which he is named as skipper.