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MOSSEL BAY NEWS & VIDEO - Yacht and Boat Club president Wilhelm von Schütz was having his usual afternoon swim on Wednesday, 6 December, at Santos Beach when he suddenly saw a large yacht in the shallow water at about 16:15.
It was stuck in the sand and listing. "It happened so fast - 10 minutes," he said.
"I called the NSRI," Von Schütz told the Mossel Bay Advertiser. Just prior to that the NSRI received a call from the public about the yacht at 16:05, Mossel Bay NSRI station commander André Fraser said.
Von Schütz said: "It was a 40-footer, weighing 20 tons. I waded to the yacht. There was a Polish couple on board and I tried to help them."
The woman was assisted off the yacht.
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It had been anchored in the bay and the anchor chain broke in the strong swells.
"The lee shore wind blew the yacht on to the beach quickly. This is why there are so many wrecks on Santos Beach and why the furthest point towards De Bakke is called Danger Point. Boats used to blow ashore in the south-easter."
The wind was estimated at 15 to 20 knots and the swells at three to four metres.
The NSRI launched two rescue craft and NSRI swimmers brought a tow rope to the yacht. Other NSRI volunteers also approached from the beach to help.
Fraser said: "With the yacht having a large keel, it was difficult to get it off the sand."
Von Schütz said: "My son Hansie, who is also with the NSRI, had the good idea of putting the sails up.
"We did this, the boat heeled and this made the keel lift off the sand. With the sails up it gave the boat power and forward motion to get off the beach."
By 17:30 it was high tide and this also helped in floating the yacht, Von Schütz said.
The yacht, named Day Off, from Cape Town, has a steel hull and is well contructed and it appeared no damage was done.
The NSRI arrive to assist.
There had been engine problems, so the couple could not start the motor when the anchor chain broke.
That is why the boat was blown on to the beach, Von Schütz said.
"They should not really anchor in the bay, but probably because of engine problems they could not move to the harbour and they probably did not want to go to sea because of the high swells."
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The yacht was towed to a safe mooring at the Mossel Bay Yacht and Boat Club.
NSRI volunteers and By Grace ambulance services attended to the woman on the beach, who was "quite traumatised", Fraser said.
He had confirmed the yacht had been on a voyage and had anchored in Mossel Bay to shelter from an approaching storm.
Von Schütz said: "The NSRI are real heroes in this. They launched the rescue craft and brought the tow rope."
The volunteers had a busy afternoon: Fraser said that after the incident with the yacht, Day Off: "Then we assisted a German couple on the yacht St Michelle, also on a voyage, to get safely into the harbour and it was brought in with the assistance of our sea rescue craft without incident and once safely moored required no further assistance."
Read a previous article: Yacht runs aground on Santos Beach
ARTICLE, VIDEO & PHOTOS: LINDA SPARG, MOSSEL BAY ADVERTISER JOURNALIST
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