Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Big Ships Can't Stop, Nor Turn Fast

Small boats can ...





Bummer, when this happens to your new boat. I suppose they could have turned, reversed or hit the throttles and avoided being sunk by the whaling ship. But Oh well, sunk it was.

The New Zealand Herald reported:

The crew of the New Zealand trimaran harassing Japanese whalers in the Southern Ocean had to be rescued after their boat was allegedly rammed and sunk by a Japanese ship, anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society says.

The confrontation is thought to have happened early today in the area of Commonwealth Bay off the Adelie Coast of Antarctica.

The former Earthrace boat – now known as the Ady Gil – was captained by Aucklander Pete Bethune and had at least three other New Zealanders and a Dutchman in its crew.

Mr Bethune said before his departure he would not follow previous Sea Shepherd tactics and try to ram Japanese whalers.

Sea Shepherd leader Paul Watson told The Age newspaper the Ady Gill had been cut in half by the Japanese whaler acting as a security vessel for the Japanese fleet.

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