According to the Spanish maritime rescue organisation Salvamento Marítimo, the Canary Islands Rescue Co-ordination Centre received a report of a sailing yacht that was unable to manoeuvre off the coast of Lanzarote at around 5.45 am local time. At that point, the boat was already situated directly off the Órzola pier. The control centre alerted the rescue vessel ‘Salvamar Acrux’, the helicopter ‘Helimer 211’ and the Lanzarote fire brigade.
It is unclear why the yacht was no longer manoeuvrable. Spanish media are reporting an engine failure.
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Four crew members in the liferaft
When the rescue services arrived, the yacht was lying on the rocks near the harbour entrance. Four crew members had taken to a liferaft. The skipper had managed to reach the rocky shore under his own steam.
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The fire brigade rescued the four shipwrecked people from the island using a water rescue vehicle and took them to Órzola. The “Salvamar Acrux” then recovered the abandoned life raft. It is not clear from the available reports whether the four crew members left the vessel before the ship ran aground or only after it first struck the rocks.
The report on a … describes how to practise deploying and boarding a life raft in a practical setting. Sea survival training for emergencies at sea under controlled conditions.
According to the local emergency services, the crew consists of three men and two women of French nationality, aged between 20 and 30. Paramedics examined and treated them at the harbour. Two were suffering from hypothermia and had grazes, including on their hands and knees. The other crew members also sustained minor injuries or bruises.
Crew members were taken to the Doctor José Molina Orosa Hospital in Arrecife for further examination. No serious injuries were reported.
Fuselage breaks apart in the swell
The yacht was initially lying on its side against the rocky harbour defences. Waves repeatedly slammed the hull against the rocks. According to the local emergency services, it eventually broke apart. Parts of the vessel sank, whilst others remained wedged between the rocks.
Emergency services inspected the scene of the accident for any leaking fuel or other environmentally hazardous residues. According to initial reports from the maritime rescue service, the wreckage did not pose an immediate danger to shipping. It was not yet clear whether any fuel had leaked or how the wreckage was to be recovered.
Circumstances of the accident remain unclear
Spanish local media report that civil protection officials referred to previous similar incidents in the area around the harbour entrance. The issue of signage in that area was also raised. It is not known whether this played a role in the current stranding.
When should the crew board the life raft?
As a general rule in seamanship, one should not be too quick to abandon a yacht that is still afloat. Even a heavily damaged vessel usually offers more protection than a life raft and is easier for rescue services to spot. The German Maritime Search and Rescue Service (DGzRS) therefore recommends using the liferaft only as a last resort. YACHT magazine has also found in various tests that, due to the relatively limited protection it offers, the liferaft should be used only as a last resort.
However, this does not mean waiting until the very last moment to make preparations. As soon as a serious danger becomes apparent, the crew should make an emergency call, put on life jackets, prepare the life raft and keep essential emergency equipment to hand. The following are helpful in this regard pre-defined emergency roles and checklists for various maritime emergencies.
The situation is different if a yacht has already run aground on rocks and is being repeatedly battered against the rocks by the surf. In that case, the vessel can break apart within a short space of time. There is also a risk of injury from violent movements, falling debris or the rigging. In such a situation, staying on board for too long can be life-threatening. The crucial factor is not whether the yacht is still afloat, but whether it actually still offers the crew sufficient protection. As soon as leaving the vessel is safer than remaining on board, evacuation should take place.
However, boarding the life raft immediately next to a rocky coastline is also dangerous. The surf can throw the raft against the rocks or the damaged hull, damaging its air chambers. Where possible, it should therefore be deployed from a sheltered side of the yacht that is free of obstacles. The tether must initially remain attached to the vessel. Ideally, the crew should board the fully inflated raft directly from the vessel without having to enter the water. Just how difficult boarding and subsequently remaining on board can be, even in comparatively calm conditions, is demonstrated by a YACHT’s own experiment: spending a night in a life raft. As soon as everyone has boarded and the vessel gets dangerously close to the wreck, the mooring line must be cut and the island moved out of the danger zone. In strong surf, this may only be possible to a limited extent.
Even the seemingly short route over the rocks to shore is not necessarily safer. Breaking waves can hurl people against the rocks or drag them back into the water. For this reason, an evacuation should, where possible, be co-ordinated with the maritime rescue services, provided there is still time to do so. In the case of Lanzarote, one crew member made it ashore over the rocks, whilst the other four sought shelter in the liferaft. It is not yet known whether these decisions were made immediately before or only after the yacht ran aground. Consequently, it is not possible to deduce from the accident what the optimal time would have been to abandon the yacht.
The most important lesson is this: prepare the liferaft in good time, but do not abandon the vessel until it becomes more dangerous for the crew to remain on board. However, in the case of a yacht that is stranded on rocks in the surf and in danger of breaking apart, this point may be reached much sooner than in the case of a damaged but still free-floating vessel on the open sea.
Book recommendation
Medicine at Sea by Jens Kohfahl covers first aid, diagnosis and treatment on board. A key focus is on providing care in medical emergencies before professional help arrives. Among other things, the book explains how to deal with bleeding, loss of consciousness and drowning emergencies. Illustrations, a colour-coding system and guidance on putting together a first-aid kit make it easier to prepare and find your way around in an emergency.
What has been your experience of using the life raft?
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital