Yeppoon yachtsman Roger Searl mourned after capsize tragedy near Lady Elliot Island

A passionate sailor and long-serving principal, whose legacy lives on in schools and the hearts of his devastated loved ones, is being remembered after he died in a yachting tragedy off Queensland’s coast.

Yeppoon yachtsman Roger Searl mourned after the capsize tragedy near Lady Elliot Island, near Gladstone, Queensland, on June 16, 2024.

A legendary yachtsman, passionate educator, and school principal has left an irreplaceable hole in the hearts of his loved ones and a lasting legacy in schools and countless lives after his tragic death at sea.

Roger Searl dedicated much of his life to the education of young people with a strong focus on working with First Nations people and the environment.

He was the crew of the vessel which overturned about four nautical miles south of Lady Elliot Island last weekend.

Two other men, a father and son in their 60s and 20s also from Yeppoon survived the tragic accident.

The Rear Commodore of the Capricornia Cruising Yacht Club and former long-serving principal is survived by his wife Kerry and three children Tom, Anna and Lucy.

In a statement on Thursday, his devastated family remembered Roger for his “love of life, his family, nature, sailing and the significant impact he had on so many”.

Born in Bega, NSW where he grew up in the Bega Valley, Roger completed his teacher training in Goulburn and his first posting was to the International School at Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea where he taught manual arts.

He moved on to Thursday Island where he met Kerry who was a remote area nurse in the outer islands of the Torres Straits.

From there they moved to Townsville where Roger completed a postgraduate qualification in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander education.

They moved to the Cherbourg community where Roger taught at the state school and following his time there, they moved to Central Queensland.

Yeppoon yachtsman and legendary school principal Roger Searl is being mourned after a capsize tragedy near Lady Elliot Island, Queensland, on June 16, 2024.

Roger took up work at Rockhampton State High School where he eventually became deputy principal while Kerry worked at CQUniversity in the undergraduate nursing program,

Roger left Rockhampton high to take up a posting as Farnborough Primary School Principal and then would become the Principal at Konomie Island Environmental Education Centre, formerly known as North Keppel Island.

Roger worked there for many years before retiring.

Even in retirement, Roger took up a change of occupation and was a casual farmhand on the coast and finally purchased his beloved yacht ‘Sunrise’.

Sailing was a part of Roger’s life since childhood.

Central Queensland community leaders also paid tribute.

Member for Keppel Brittany Lauga worked with Roger during his time at Konomie Island Environmental Education Centre – the only one of its kind on a national park island surrounded by the Great Barrier Marine Park and about 11 kilometres off Yeppoon.

The centre is operated by the Dept of Education (DoE) and the day-to-day operations are often conducted with key island management partners such as Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services (QPWS).

Ms Lauga described Roger as “an amazing teacher and principal who cared greatly about students from right across Queensland learning about science and the Great Barrier Reef”.

“It was in this role that he left a lasting legacy in the hearts and minds of thousands of students as well as on the environment,” Ms Lauga said.

“I know he also inspired many early service teachers.

“My heart goes out to Roger’s family and friends.

“I know they will be deeply mourning a legend of the sea and their family”.

Capricornia Catchments Inc president Michelle McRae said Roger’s legacy with Konomie was evident by its popularity with local schools as it was now the “choice location for school to go and do their camps”.

“Now, if you don’t get in on the day that the bookings open for the next year, it’s booked out,” she said, recalling Roger focused on the environmental side of things at the centre which had its own little nursery, along with a social, cultural museum with Woppaburra artefacts and a little mini windmill turbine set up for educating about power off the mainland grid.

Ms McRae said Capricornia Catchments had worked with Roger, who was a committee member between 2021-2023, from his education days on Konomie when the catchments members would work on projects on the island, such as weed control and maintenance, and on occasion, he would help them with the island’s boat and take them to other islands to do environmental work.

“He was very much involved and loved doing work with the natural environment, especially things to do with the reef and Konomie in particular,” she said.

“He’d join us often outside of work.

“He’d join us for our marine debris clean ups and things like that throughout CQ.

“He was always very, very open with his words and his knowledge… he wasn’t the sort of fellow to sit back and say nothing… he’d let you know if he thought you were steering down the wrong path or whatever.

“It was very, very forthright. He was very good.”

Ms McRae remembered Roger as someone who loved sailing and anything to do with water”.

“He was a very friendly sort of bloke and he’d have a chat with anyone,” she said.

“He was a valued member of our management committee.

“We were all just dumbfounded to hear that he had passed away in that accident. That was terrible.”

Queensland Association of Outdoor and Environmental Education Centre Leaders Inc President Cam Mackenzie worked with Roger for many years and described him as a “sincere gentleman”.

“He was very passionate about marine and environmental education,” he said.

“He had a very soft personality, he was very approachable and inclusive and he loved teaching kids.”

Investigations into the tragedy are ongoing and police will prepare a report for the coroner.