David Simpson, 64, was thrown from his boat when a strong wave hit the vessel near Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, CNN’s subsidiary 9News reported.
He watches as his boat – with his dog on board – drifts away and manages to swim about a mile to a water beacon, where he waits to be pushed up by a wave to cling to the beacon’s ladder. .
The man was discovered on a beacon at sea.
From Caloundra Volunteer Coast Guard – QF4 / Facebook
“The wave hit the side of the boat and I tried to secure the dinghy that was slightly driven and a rope that broke broke the dinghy,” Simpson told 9News. “The dinghy hit me … and I fell about 2.5, 3 feet onto my ribs and off the boat.”
Another sailor later discovered the unmanned vessel with the car still running and the dog on board, and alerted authorities.
Simpson said he tried to get attention in any way, and even took off his shorts to wave it around. “Maybe that’s why no one stopped because I was naked,” he said.
Three hours after the alarm was sounded, Simpson was found by a helicopter that spotted him in the dark 1.6 km from his vessel.
“He’s a very happy man who was able to get to that beacon,” Mooloolaba Coast Guard commander Ian Hunt told 9News.
The dog Mitch was rescued by Surf Lifesaving Queensland.
From Surf Life Saving Queensland / Twitter
The Mooloolaba Coast Guard said on Wednesday that efforts to retrieve the now grounded vessel were continuing.