Drama on high seas

Press, 7 April 1979, Page 1

Drama on high seas

Blenheim reporter Two inexperienced sailors brought an 8.5 m Tasmanian yacht into Picton yesterday afternoon having conned the vessel without any navigational experience since the skipper was washed overboard in mid-Tasman eight days ago.

The missing man is John Malcolm Petty, aged about 50, of Sheffield. Tasmania.

The members of the crew who brought the ferro-concrete yacht Conamore into Picton are Louise Flaherty, aged 22, a nurse, of Turners Beach, Tasmania, and Richard John Grieg. They followed a course which had been previously set by Mr Petty. They set out after an abortive attempt to find Mr Petty in high seas and gale-force winds.

The Conamore left Devonport, Tasmania, on March 20 for Picton. It was owned and skippered

by Mr Petty, who is believed to have been an experienced small boat sailor and navigator and who was a former member of the Royal Navy. He made frequent lone trips and sailed in races around the coast of Australia, but had not previously left Australian waters.

Before dawn on March 30 the yacht was entering its third day in a heavystorm and was still headed for New Zealand. It was carrying only a storm jib and was sailing on autopilot. No sail changes were necessary and there was no need to leave the cockpit.

Miss Flaherty was in her bunk when she realised that Mr Petty had gone into the cockpit.- Soon afterwards she was thrown violently out of her bunk over the lee-cloth. The Conamore rolled to about 90 degrees and there was a heavy crash of sea on the starboard side, then a roll to port. When the yacht righted itself, Miss

Flaherty and Mr Grieg went on deck to see if Mr Petty was all right. He was no longer on the yacht. They- turned the yacht about and began to search, but the seas were in excess of 5 m, it was raining heavily, and was cold and dark.

Mr Petty had not worn a life-jacket or safety harness.

Miss Flaherty' said last evening that the two had then carried on to New Zealand although neither had any navigational experience to speak of. They managed to reach the intended port within a few hours of their estimated time by following the course Mr Petty had set.

They had seen no other ships until they were within a few hours of the New Zealand coast.

The only radio equipment on board was a citizen’s band set which could only pick up an Australian station.