Kowanyama man, 54, killed in boating incident near Batt Reef off the coast of Port Douglas

A reef fishing trip has turned to tragedy with the death of a 54-year-old man after the boat he was in capsized in rough seas near Port Douglas. LATEST DETAILS

One man has died and two were pulled from the water following a marine incident off Port Douglas late on Sunday night. Picture: File photo

An overnight reef fishing trip has turned to tragedy with the death of a 54-year-old man after the boat he was in capsized in rough seas.

Police received a distress call via triple-0 from a boat crew about 10pm on Sunday night and located three men clinging to a flipped vessel near Batt Reef, about 30km East of Port Douglas, almost three hours later.

A 54-year-old Napranum man, believed to be related to the other two men, was deceased upon police arrival.

Two Cairns men, aged 24 and 26, were pulled from the water.

Sgt Andrew Ibell of Cairns Water Police said initial investigations indicated rough seas caused the small boat to capsize.

Emergency services crews rescued two men near Batt Reef 30km east of Port Douglas after their boat sunk, but one other man was discovered deceased. Picture: File photos

“About 10pm last night police received a triple-0 phone call from a vessel saying three people were on board and that they were sinking. The one and only call said they were located near Double Island … subsequent checks of mobile phone data indicated they were more likely to be in the vicinity of Batt Reef,” Sgt Ibell said.

“Just after midnight the rescue helicopter located some debris on the water. The police vessel proceeded immediately to that area and within a nautical mile located a partially submerged, 4.3m aluminium dinghy. Two persons were alive and well but unfortunately the third was deceased. They were recovered and transported to Cairns.”

Sgt Ibell said the older man’s cause of death was unknown at this stage.

“That will be a subject of a post mortem examination and report to the Coroner,” he said.

“They were involved in fishing activities. We believe they left Yorkeys Knob about 4pm yesterday afternoon and got into difficulty about the time the triple-0 call was made.

“We believe there was an EPIRB on board; however, in the capsize that appears to have been lost.

“The two survivors were wearing life jackets when they were located.”

The Batt Reef capsize is the second tragic marine incident in FNQ waters in less than a week.

Respected Cairns speech therapist Wendy Richardson is still missing after her boat capsized near Mabuiag Island in the Torres Strait on Thursday afternoon.

Police suspended the search for Ms Richardson on Monday.

Sgt Ibell had an important safety message for all Far North boaties.

“Ensure you have all the correct safety equipment and be aware of the ever changing weather conditions before setting out,” he said.

“Let people know where you’re going and what you’re doing, and make sure the boat is appropriate for the voyage.”

Originally published as Kowanyama man, 54, killed in boating incident near Batt Reef off the coast of Port Douglas