Yacht assisted off Hout Bay

Geoff Stephens, NSRI Hout Bay deputy station commander, said:At 19h00, Wednesday, 18th April, NSRI Hout Bay duty crew were activated following a request for assistance from the training yacht Doninia, with 6 crew onboard. A Cape Town skipper and 3 crew from Colorado, 2 men and a woman, 1 crewman from Pretoria, and 1 crewman from Kathu, reported to be experiencing intermittent motor mechanical problems, in windless conditions, making slow progress towards Hout Bay and requiring assistance.The yacht had departed Cape Town earlier in the day in fair winds and were engaged in sailing training, a skippers course, off Cape Point, but after wind conditions dropped they were becalmed and unable to sail and they had moved over to motor power but their motor was overheating intermittently despite making repairs during their effort to reach Hout Bay harbour.The sea rescue craft Nadine Gordimer was launched and rendezvoused with them 3 nautical miles off Noordhoek. We towed them without incident to Hout Bay harbour where they moored and NSRI assisted to arrange meals and accommodation for them in Hout Bay. No further assistance was required.The operation completed just after midnight.The owner will affect repairs to his yacht on Thursday and the sailors will go by road to Saldanha for the next leg of their sailing training.