British national rescued from sinking yacht off Newcastle coast
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A British national has been saved from his sinking yacht after a 26-hour rescue operation off the coast of Australia.
The 40-year-old man had been sailing from Tahiti – a French Polynesian island nearly 8,000km from Australia -when his 50-foot Beneteau yacht hit rough seas 95 nautical miles off the coast of Newcastle, in New South Wales, at 12am on Friday.
The Marine Area Command received reports the vessel was taking on water and rescue teams were dispatched to track down the yacht.
Port Stephens Water Police and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority finally managed to find the vessel 73 nautical miles off the coast at 10am.
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The man was rescued from the yacht and his vessel was towed safely to Newcastle Harbour at 1.30am on Saturday.
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The man was handed over to Australian Border Force where he was processed through immigration.
Police then escorted him to Sydney where he was placed into mandatory hotel quarantine.
New South Wales Police would not comment on why the man had been sailing and whether he was intending to land in Australia.
Daily Mail Australia contacted Australia Border Force for comment.
Source: Thanks msn.com