Frantic fishermen use buckets to try and stop their boat from sinking
Two fishermen on a sinking boat kilometres off the coast of Sydney have worked frantically to save their vessel and themselves, using buckets to stop them from going under.
With water rushing in, the crew of On the Prowl 2 began frantically bailing water out by hand as they foundered 15 nautical miles out to sea.
When water police and maritime services reached them two hours later, the emergency was far from over.
Authorities attempted to tow the boat, but the first rope snapped. Then the water pump failed, sparking panic still more than half an hour from shore.
But their luck soon changed when the next towing attempt was a success. The fishermen finally made it to shore as their strength gave out.
Rescued fisherman Chris Cordina said he was about 10 minutes from exhaustion.
At one point the pair thought they would have to abandon their boat.
“As soon as I saw that other boat, then I stopped stressing as much otherwise I would have been straight in the water,” Chris said.
Back on dry land, their spirits buoyed ahead of the next challenge they face.
“I just hope the missus don’t see this before we ring her and tell her!” Chris’ father Joe joked of the 7 News interview.
Joe and Chris said the ordeal was the hairiest of their 30 years of fishing together, but as soon as they fix the boat they will be back out in the ocean.
They thanked the police and the Navy who went out to help them.
“They got out there real quick, thanks a lot,” Chris said.
The pair still don’t know if they hit something – hopefully not a whale straying from a nearby pod. The father and son are just glad that, this time, they were the ones that got away.
