Safe and sound: The Indonesian fishermen seen standing on a beach on Bedwell Island, 313km west of Broome, Australia. — AP
Eight Indonesian fishermen are feared drowned and another 11 have been rescued after spending six days without food or water on a barren island off the northwest Australian coast after a powerful tropical cyclone, authorities said.
Two primitive wooden Indonesian fishing boats were caught in the path of Cyclone Ilsa, which made landfall on Friday as Australia’s most powerful storm in eight years, with winds gusting at an apparent record of 289kph.
One of the boats, Putri Jaya, sank in “extreme weather conditions” on April 11 or 12 while Ilsa was gathering strength over the Indian Ocean and heading toward the coast, Australian Maritime Safety Authority said yesterday in a statement, citing survivors.
The other boat, Express 1, ran aground with 10 men aboard in the early hours of April 12 on Bedwell Island, a sandy outcrop some 300km west of the Australian coastal tourist town of Broome, the authority said.
The only known survivor from the Putri Jaya spent 30 hours in the water before washing ashore on the same island, the statement said.
“They all remained (on Bedwell Island) for six days without food and water before being rescued on Monday night,” the authority said.
The Putri Jaya survivor used a fuel can to stay afloat at sea, Indonesian officials told Australian Broadcasting Corp.
The survivors were spotted Monday by the Australian Border Force, which patrols Australia’s northern approaches for smuggling and other illegal activity, from a plane on a routine surveillance mission.
A Broome-based rescue helicopter was deployed and winched all 11 aboard in failing light.
Gordon Watt, a manager at helicopter provider PHI Aviation, said the rescue helicopter crew had been unable to land on the sand.“They had to conduct winch recoveries which, in itself, is a challenging task,” Watt said.
The survivors were taken to Broome Hospital where Border Force said in a statement they were reported to “be in good health despite their ordeal.”
They have been flown from Broome to the northern city of Darwin from where they will be flown back to Indonesia, the statement added. — AP
