GREAT BARRIER IS. (New Zealand)
Sep 16, 2006
Leave it to a Border Collie to figure her way out of this mess.
Just after 3pm on Friday, Sep. 15, the Aukland Police Maritime Unit picked up a mayday from a boat in distress in the Hauraki Gulf. A 49-year-old man radioed that his 28ft craft had struck something 3 miles off Port Jackson and was taking on water.
Two coast guard boats, rescue aircraft, a Westpac Rescue helicopter, a police copter and eight private vessels rushed to the scene where they spotted the man clinging to the submerged hull of the ship at 4:50pm.
The man was winched to safety and flown to Auckland City Hospital uninjured. The only problem? They missed the dog.
"Ellie", an adult Border Collie who had been onboard, was presumed dead. Duty Officer Mike Lawrence said Friday night, "One of our rescuers thinks they saw it in the cabin of the boat when it rolled over in a wave so I think you'd find it is dead inside the cabin unfortunately."
He said the rescuers spent 45 minutes looking for the dog without any luck before returning to port.
But on Saturday morning, residents of Great Barrier Island were surprised to hear barking and find one perfectly healthy (but wet) pooch who had reached dry land along with the wreckage of the boat.
It is believed that she survived by finding an air pocket inside the cabin. |
OLD MUTT AND THE SEA
