Man drowns at Outer Harbor after boat capsized in treacherous conditions

Locals have revealed how treacherous conditions were last night when a boat crashed into rocks and capsized at Outer Harbor, leaving one man dead.

An elderly man has drowned and another man was winched to safety after their boat capsized at Outer Harbor on Thursday night.

The alarm was raised about 6.15pm when their 15ft fibreglass boat crashed into rocks at the southern Outer Harbor breakwater.

Both occupants – a 77-year-old from Windsor Gardens and 66-year-old from Smithfield Plains – fell into the water.

They were spotted by the PolAir police helicopter and the 66-year-old was winched to safety.

He was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital with chest injuries which are not life threatening.

Police hook the retrieved boat back up to a trailer at the Outer Harbor boat ramp. Picture Mark Brake

Police inspect the boat that capsized at Outer Harbor. Picture: Patrick James

Police divers investigate the sunken boat at the Outer Harbor breakwater. Picture Mark Brake

The 77-year-old man was found unresponsive, and his body was recovered by the Water Operations Unit a short time later.

Ben Horrocks, who has operated BA Boat Hire at the North Haven boat ramp for the last three-and-a-half years, said at about 3pm on Thursday, conditions had become too treacherous and all boats were brought in.

“Come two o’clock or three o’clock here on a normal afternoon and all the boats are back in as the sea breeze is far too strong,” he said.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to be out there at six.”

Mr Horrocks shared his condolences for the family, and said the incident hits close to home.

“It’s awful, especially right before the long weekend,” he said.

“You don’t like to ever hear of anything like this.”

Mr Horrocks did not know the two men and said a few accidents have occurred over the years.

Local Paul Goreham, 71, of North Haven, said he became concerned when he heard the police helicopter overhead, which is unusual for night time in the area.

Police divers investigate the sunken boat as the container ship the Hamburg Highway heads out to sea at the Outer Harbor breakwater. Picture: Mark Brake

“I knew immediately there was something going on,” he said.

“At that time of night, they had no chance, nobody could have seen them to get to them as there’s no walkways near those rocks to help them.”

Mr Goreham said at the time of the capsizing, water would have been breaking over the top of the wall where the men crashed into.

He said it would have been too difficult for the men to climb to safety.

“I looked over the sea at about half-past-five and thought ‘I wouldn’t want to be out there’, not even in a 50 foot boat,” Mr Goreham added.

The man’s death is not considered suspicious.

The boat after it was retrieved by police and brought back on land. Picture: Patrick James