Tuesday, 20th November, 2012At 11h38 on Tuesday, 20th November NSRI Knysna duty crew were called out following reports of a woman who was injured after allegedly falling overboard from the charter boat MOONRAKER which was underway in the Knysna Heads.Gaeme Harding, NSRI Knysna station commander, said that it is not known to NSRI what caused the female to go overboard. The 52 year old from Mumbai, India is on holiday in South Africa with her family.According to eye-witnesses the crew of the charter boat were unable to recover her back onto the boat and the skipper of the charter boat then jumped into the water to assist her.The yacht HEAD EXPLORER, owned by the Featherbed Company, which we believe were in the area at the time, then came alongside to assist and she was able to be recovered onto the 'sugar scoop' of the yacht HEAD EXPLORER. The skipper of HEAD EXPLORER called NSRI for assistance.HEAD EXPLORER then made her way towards Knysna Harbour with the woman being held securely by crew members while she lay on the Sugar Scoop.The charter boat MOONRAKER accompanied the yacht to Port.Our Knysna volunteers met up with the yacht as they docked and NSRI medics found the woman to have a suspected fractured right humerus. She was stabilized on-scene by NSRI medics.An ER24 ambulance was summoned and the patient has been transported to hospital in a stable condition.Hospital staff have confirmed that the patient has fractured her right humerus in three places and is due to undergo surgery.SAMSA (The South African Maritime Safety Authority) have served an immediate prohibition notice on the charter boat MOONRAKER pending an investigation.
