Occupants of a disabled vessel on Bluff Harbour were spotted waving a make-shift white distress flag on Sunday afternoon after their boat broke down and began drifting on the outgoing tide.
A Coastguard Tautiaki Moana spokesperson said the incident was identified by experienced locals who noticed the 7.5m runabout drifting towards the harbour entrance. The initial concern was raised by a local Coastguard member, but no formal distress call was made.
Two Bluff Coastguard volunteers, who were undertaking maintenance on the Bluff Rescue vessel at the time, were able to respond immediately to the distressed vessel.
Upon reaching the harbour entrance, they observed the disabled boat already under tow by a smaller 5m runabout.
However given the strength of the outgoing tide, volunteers believed the smaller boat would struggle to complete the tow safely and decided to take over the rescue.
The spokesperson said the vessel, which had been disabled by a faulty fuel pump, was towed safely back to the shore.
Coastguard volunteers did not observe any of the boat’s occupants wearing life-jackets, the spokesperson said. — Toni McDonald
