Durban - The McGovern family from Port Shepstone were in a mixed turmoil of anxiety and relief last night as they waited for news of their son Dylan, 20, who was one of four sailors rescued in Mozambican waters after the yacht they were aboard sank on Thursday.
Last night, Christeen McGovern said they hoped to hear Dylan had arrived safely at the Port of Moroni in the Comoros where the four were being taken by an oil tanker, the crew of which had saved them.
“We still know very little about what happened. It all started when I got this strange phone call on Thursday around lunchtime.
"Then I heard Dylan's voice, saying the yacht had sunk, but they are all safe. At first I thought he was joking and I told him it wasn't funny.
“Then he said again: ‘We’ve got nothing, we lost everything, everything is gone, but tell dad I’m safe. I’m fine mom, I’m safe’.
“He only had a few minutes to talk and said he was phoning from a satellite phone on an oil tanker,” said Christeen.
The former Creston College pupil is a qualified skipper and yacht master and was aboard the yacht Kinda Magic with two sailors from Cape Town and one from Johannesburg.
They were delivering the 40-foot yacht to the Seychelles and left Hout Bay, Cape Town, on October 20.
The crew had stopped in at Mossel Bay and East London, but because weather conditions were so good, they decided not to stop in at Richards Bay and continued up to Mozambique.
“They were all very excited about this trip. Prior to Dylan’s call, they had been in Bassa (Mozambique). They had caught tuna and had been having sushi. It all sounded so exciting and beautiful. There was no warning that something was going to go wrong. They had been at sea for about three weeks. Something drastic must have gone wrong. We are so very grateful to the captain of the tanker who detoured to save them,” she said.
Describing Dylan as “calm and level-headed”, his mother added: “Dylan doesn't get excited easily and they were all experienced sailors. I know he'll be gutted that the yacht sank.”
On Friday, Jared Blows, head of the Maritime Rescue Co-Ordination Centre (MRCC) based in Cape Town, said they first received a distress signal from Kinda Magic just before 7am on Thursday.
The stricken yacht was reported to be about 215km from Ilha Do Fogo (Mozambique) and approximately 175km directly from the shore.
“We picked up that the MT Mersini, an oil tanker, was in close proximity. We contacted them and requested they divert to assist the distressed yacht,” said Blows.
The tanker arrived at the scene just after 8.30am and found the four South African sailors had already got into their life raft and the yacht was partially submerged.
The four were plucked to safety and Blows said: “We are not sure what caused the sinking as yet. From what we understand the tanker should reach the Comoros later tonight.”
Kinda Magic sank soon after the rescue.
Chief operating officer for Samsa (South African Maritime Safety Authority), Sobantu Tilayi, said the actions of the captain and crew of the MT Mersini in saving the South Africans' lives was “greatly appreciated”.
He also praised the MRCC for their efficient handling of the emergency situation.
“We are faced daily with bad weather and deteriorating weather patterns. The quick response of the MRCC and the efforts of nearby ships averted a near tragic incident,” said Tilayi.