Search and rescue for missing man after yacht overturned off Lady Elliot Island
A father and son have been released from hospital after they were saved when a yacht overturned, sparking a desperate search and rescue operation that ended in tragedy.
Rockhampton
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A father and son have been released from hospital after they were saved when a yacht overturned near Lady Elliot Island at the weekend, with police locating the body of a man missing from the vessel.
The 65-year-old Yeppoon man’s body was located just after 2pm on Sunday after hours of searching with police divers, vessels and the Bundaberg-based RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter joining efforts.
The search began early Sunday morning after the yacht, travelling from Yeppoon to Brisbane, overturned about four nautical miles south of Lady Elliot Island with three people on board.
It is believed the keep snapped on the vessel, causing it to overturn.
An EPIRB was activated about 5am.
Two of the men, who were also from Yeppoon, were a father, aged in his 60s, and his son, aged in his 20s, who managed to climb onto the upside down vessel.
They were both winched to safety before being flown to Bundaberg Hospital in stable conditions for observation.
A Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service spokeswoman on Monday said both men had been discharged from hospital.
The boat isn’t the first to overturn in the waters off Lady Elliot. In February Clark Plaisir was coming back from the island after a day surfing and seeing the reef with six other surfers when their boat capsized, spilling them all out to sea.
The men were believed to all be experienced sailors.
The only clear landmark on the island is the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort.
When the owners were contacted and asked if the group were guests at the resort, they would neither confirm nor deny.
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