After experiencing a boat sinking, two stranded people were rescued from water off Torres Strait by a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker.
To better explain, at approximately 7.15am AEST on 3rd December 2020, a coastal pilot onboard the MT Godam contacted Townsville Vessel Traffic Services (VTS), reporting a sighting of two people clinging to a timber plank in the water.
As informed, the location for the sighting was about 10km southeast of Sue Islet, Warraber Reef. Conditions were rough with two to three metre swells with around 30 knot winds.
In light of the situation, Townsville VTS immediately contacted the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) who tasked its Challenger search and rescue jet from Cairns and a Queensland Government rescue helicopter to the area.
Following the above, both aircraft arrived on scene at about 9am, at which point in time the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker which was transiting the Torres Strait, successfully retrieved one person from the water.
As for the second person, the helicopter managed to rescue him as well.
For the records, both survivors were transferred by the rescue helicopter to medical facilities on Thursday Island.
According to AMSA, the tanker maintained visual contact with both people throughout the rescue operation despite the challenging conditions.
Concluding, the cause of the boat sinking is unclear at this early stage, while AMSA understands they were in the water since 4pm 2nd December.
