The worst conditions are in the Pacific Ocean, where there is no information about the coast.
Tapio Lehtinen’s Asteria boat passed the Canary Islands in 2018. www.pplmedia.com
A solo sailor Tapio Lehtinen was shipwrecked on Friday morning Finnish time while sailing around the world. Lehtinen’s boat sank in five minutes in the Indian Ocean, more than 800 kilometers southeast of Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
The place is close to the southern coast of Africa, which is known for challenging sailing conditions. The water temperature at this time of the year is only 15 degrees.
A solo sailor Ari Huusela your trip in the same waters two years ago. He knows exactly what kind of place it is.
– The conditions there were not completely impossible. Wind of 10–20 meters and waves of four meters are a normal situation. There could be much worse conditions, says Huusela.
Lehtinen managed to get to the life raft with the life jacket. On the ferry, he was able to contact rescuers using an emergency locator.
At the time of the Finnish distress signal, the nearest ship was about 500 kilometers away, which sounds really far.
– The Indian Ocean and the Southern Ocean are such an area where there is not so much ship traffic. In the Atlantic, there is almost always a ship a few hours away. Fortunately, there was a ship close by now.
2,000 kilometers to the shore
Tapio Lehtinen’s ship sank in five minutes off South Africa. Google Earth
In the worst possible case, Lehtinen would have had to wait even days in a rescue boat.
– From there, if we go further past Australia to the Pacific Ocean, it’s 2,000 kilometers in every direction to the nearest shore. The water is still a little colder and the conditions are often a little more difficult.
According to Huusela, there are some ships moving in those waters, but the rescue operation will be launched from the coast of Australia.
– There it can even take several days. The life rafts and these competitions have prepared for it.
The tragedy of 1997
Tapio Lehtinen was in normal conditions for his location when he sent the emergency signal. GGR / Tapio Lehtinen
There are overlapping circumnavigations every two years. Huusela was circumnavigating the globe by water in 2020. In almost every race, a competitor gets into sea trouble.
– After 1997, everyone has come home with wet hair. There have been various operations that have all ended well.
In 1997, a Canadian sailor Gerry Roufs drowned at sea in the Southern Ocean. Since then, safety regulations have been tightened and rescue equipment has developed.
Lehtinen and Huusela have both been to Lohja in the sea rescue simulator to train in authentic conditions. In the dark training hall, you can create artificial storm wind and rain.
– Yes, Tapio has trained for this job just like all of us who are in that ocean.
Huusela believes that his competitor is not about to give up on sailing, even though the fleet sank to the bottom of the sea. Many sailors who have experienced sea distress in the past have aimed for the next race immediately after a setback.
In sailing, partners do not abandon shipwrecked sailors, but on the contrary encourage them to continue.