Skipper Nicolas Hauzy had to be evacuated from his yacht on Saturday evening after he broke his ankle in rough seas. Nicholas was attempting to fix a fault in the hydraulic steering when the accident happened around 1200 GMT on Saturday 22 November.
The crew immediately activated their EPIRB as well as the SOS button on the Delorme InReach tracking device carried by Atlantic Odyssey yachts. Within minutes of the emergency message being received, the Atlantic Odyssey organisers and Cross Gris-Nez, the French Operational Rescue Center which coordinates SAR operations, were in touch with the crew of Cocojet III to ascertain that there was no immediate risk to life or the boat.
The coastguard arranged for a doctor to speak to Nicolas to assess the situation, at which point an emergency evacuation was advised. The passenger cruise ship Saga Pearl II diverted its route to meet Cocojet III and at 2300 UTC on Saturday 22 November, Nicolas was taken off his yacht onto Saga Pearl II. The cruise ship is now making its way to the Cape Verdes and will arrive in Sao Vincente on Sunday afternoon.
The remaining crew on Cocojet III will sail to the Cape Verdes, ETA Monday afternoon. Fellow Atlantic Odyssey yacht Mandarina has diverted to provide assistance if required.
Cocojet III
Cocojet III is a French Outremer 55 catamaran, owned by Nicolas and Adélaïde Hauzy, who are sailing with their four children and three friends in the Atlantic Odyssey, which left Lanzarote on Sunday 16 November bound for Martinique.
