Please select your home edition
Edition
Maritimo S Series

What a world class sailor wants you to know about wearing a lifejacket

by NSW Maritime 27 Aug 2021 05:11 PDT

The first thing Neville Wittey does when he climbs aboard an unfamiliar boat is ask: "where are the lifejackets and where is the EPIRB?"

It's not that Neville's a nervous, newbie boater. Quite the opposite, he's a former Olympic sailor who has steered for Australia in America's Cup challenges and several Sydney-Hobart yacht races.

But a search and rescue incident forever changed Neville's appreciation of basic maritime safety equipment like lifejackets and EPIRBs - full name 'emergency position indicating radio beacons'.

About two years ago, Neville had organised a crew to help sail his 55 foot Benetau from Sydney to the Whitsundays and was sound asleep below deck at night when the boat grounded on a sandbar near Port Macquarie.

"I was sound asleep with the dog in a headlock, as happy as a clam, when I woke up getting slammed against the bulkhead - luckily feet first - thinking 'this is a dream'," Neville remembers.

"The boat was listing at 50 or 60 degrees and floorboards were missing from the impact.

"Preparations for our trip were first class, so to wake up in absolute turmoil was a terrifying thing.

"Where it got really bad for me was realising three people were overboard, I can't describe it. I've been sailing my whole life with lots of good people and to have that happen was a nightmare.

"Even though I wasn't the watch captain at the time because I was asleep it was the worst moment of my life.

"I battled my way upstairs but could see nobody and hear nothing because of the pounding of the surf. Imagine losing three friends?"

It was 40 minutes before all on board were accounted for. Another of the crew remained on board but had suffered a serious back injury from the impact. All three who had been on deck had fallen overboard when the boat first struck a sandbar 350 metres offshore. One crew member had to battle his way back to shore after being taken out to sea in a rip.

"I would hate to think what would have happened if everyone hadn't been wearing lifejackets as they wouldn't have had time to get them on. It's exactly why there's a rule that after sunset lifejackets must be worn.

"The worst part was a dear friend of mine had hurt his back in the incident. When something like this happens, all you care about is the people."

Knowing he had to alert the authorities, Neville stumbled about in the dark avoiding the obstacles on the listing boat until he found the grab bag which contained handheld radios and a knife, torches, spare battery pack and mobile phone charger, some snacks, glow sticks and ink dye to mark a location in the ocean.

"Fortunately the grab bag was exactly where it should have been, which was a great relief. Every time I hop on a boat now I say 'where is the EPIRB?'" he said.

"In so many cases an EPIRB would be difficult to reach and deploy. The EPIRB should always be in an easily accessible position inside the companion way.

"Once I fired the EPIRB and made the mayday call, I turned on all of the lights to make it easy to spot us and turned off the gas into the cabin.

"It was a very dark night with low clouds and little rain squalls - we were on such an angle that I couldn't stand up to see the plotter to give our coordinates."

"I got all the crews gear bags off and a couple of bags of water and food off and we managed to get the injured man off and up on to the beach."

Before joining the rest of the crew on the beach, Neville went back below deck to locate his faithful black seafaring cavoodle.

"Salty has fallen between the deck and the boat before so he always wears a lifejacket when he's on board. It has a handle along the back, so I picked him up like a suitcase," Neville said.

"After that, Salty was glued to me. He was traumatised, although thankfully it wasn't a lasting thing and he has been on many boats since."

Neville is eternally grateful to his rescuers who arrived by land and helicopter.

"As far as I was concerned, I was lost at sea and entirely relying on these people to help me through this crisis and they were all stunning," he said.

"We have made sure to donate to the various volunteer associations to assist them. Everyone was so thorough and caring, I thought it was magnificent."

Neville said despite being well prepared with all the safety equipment required under NSW law, he had since also added foil blankets to his collection.

"It was incredibly cold sitting on that dark beach at the end of June.

"The bottom line is that while you may never think something like this can happen to you, it can and it might. I just don't want anyone else to go through something similar and to not be prepared.

"Please don't ever underestimate the importance of carrying and knowing how to use all the required safety equipment each time you go boating."

Related Articles

A Crown for the Principality
Yacht Club de Monaco wins the 2025 Admiral's Cup The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) is delighted to announce the Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM) as the winner of the 2025 Admiral's Cup. Posted today at 12:41 pm
49er & 49erFX Junior Worlds kicks off in Rungsted
Officially opened last night with a vibrant Opening Ceremony Today, we proudly welcome 105 teams and 210 athletes from across the globe to Rungsted for the start of the 49er and 49erFX Junior World Championship 2025. Posted today at 10:56 am
RS Feva Worlds Qualifying Series complete
Sailors split into three flights of yellow, blue, and red Two days of qualifying series with 168 boats on lake Bourget, Club Nautique Voile d'es Bains, sailors split into three flights of yellow, blue, and red. Posted today at 10:24 am
A defining finale to the Admiral's Cup 2025
Provisional results are in and the overall winner will be officially announced today At the end of the 5th day of the Rolex Fastnet Race just 7 boats in the Admiral's Cup fleet were still racing. The majority had moored up in Cherbourg and the dock was filled with sailors and supporters sharing a beer, a slice of pizza and their stories. Posted today at 9:50 am
2025 iQFOiL Youth & Junior Worlds, day 5
Upwind Sprints shake up the rankings as fleets split for the final push tomorrow in the Final Series The fifth day of the 2025 iQFOiL Youth & Junior World Championships finally brought the conditions everyone was waiting for in the Bay of Brest. Posted on 29 Jul
43 Copa del Rey MAPFRE Day 1
Italy lead three classes A promising offshore breeze which topped 14kts at times diminished as the afternoon rolled meaning only the one windward leeward race could be contested, but it was enough for top Italian teams to establish an early lead. Posted on 29 Jul
Bonafous scores her first IMOCA class win
After close battle with Charal for Rolex Fastnet Race glory The French sailor Elodie Bonafous' spectacular start to her career in the IMOCA Class continued today as she followed up second place in the Course des Caps earlier this month with her first victory in the Class in the Rolex Fastnet Race. Posted on 29 Jul
Admirals Cup: Day 8 - Match racing the last miles
The front runners in class AC1 (50fters) of the 2025 Admirals' Cup are racing gybe for gybe The front runners in class AC1 (50fters) of the 2025 Admirals' Cup are match racing as they work down the side of the last Exclusion Zone heading for the race finish off Cherbourg. Posted on 29 Jul
Fastnet Race, RS Aeros, Isle of Wight
Fastnet Race, RS Aero Worlds, GL50s, Isle of Wight circumnavigation When the conversation turns to the world's greatest middle-distance bluewater races, talk tends to linger on the Rolex Fastnet Race, which started on Saturday, July 26, and for great reason. Posted on 29 Jul
Rolex Fastnet Race Day 4
Black Jack 100 takes monohull line honours ahead of arch rivals Remon Vos' RP100 Black Jack 100, skippered by Tristan Le Brun, has taken Monohull Line Honours in the centenary edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race. Posted on 29 Jul
Doyle_SailWorld_728X90px_cruise BOTTOMAllen Dynamic 40 FooterLloyd Stevenson - Catalyst GT 1456x180px BOTTOM