Abby Sunderland 'safe' on board rescue vessel

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

Dus veilig op weg naar huis.
Zonder haar boot, die nu als onzinkbaar obstakel ronddrijft, op zoek
naar een slachtoffer :(

Groet / Cees

PS. Nu is het tijd voor een evaluatie?
- boot te groot/zwaar/onhandelbaar voor een 16-jarige?
- gevolgde route geschikt voor dit seizoen?

Abby Sunderland 'safe' on board rescue vessel in Indian Ocean
http://www.perthnow.com.au/
     * Trevor Paddenburg, Chris Robinson and Carly Crawford
     * From: PerthNow
     * June 12, 2010 8:42AM
ABBY Sunderland, the 16-year-old solo sailor left stricken by
mountainous seas and hellish winds deep in the Indian Ocean, is safely
aboard a rescue boat.

She was plucked to safety by the French fishing vessel Ile De La Reunion
2000 nautical miles from the WA coast at 5.45pm, while a support
aircraft with WA police and emergency services officers circled overhead.

Her demasted 12m yacht, Wild Eyes, remains adrift.

Speaking for the first time since she was rescued, Abby said: ``It's
been a bit crazy these past few days, everything's happened pretty fast,
but it's really lucky there was a boat that could come and get me where
I was.''

Asked if she was scared, she replied: "When stuff is going on out there
you can't get too scared about it. It doesn't do any good.

``You do what you need to do - set off the EPIRB, keep the boat afloat,
do all that.

``There's really not a lot more you can do.

``Getting all scared about it doesn't help anything.''

When asked if she would sail again, she said: "I'm definitely going to
sail around the world again, or at least give it another try.

``I don't know when I'll get another chance to do it.

``I've wanted to sail around the world for years and I definitely want
to do it.''

An Australian Maritime Safety Authority said Abby was likely to be
transferred to one of two other ships steaming for the rescue site.

``Arrangements to land Ms Sunderland will now be negotiated with the
three ships that have responded to the distress situation. One ship is
bound for Australia and the other would likely return to its home port
at La Reunion,'' the spokeswoman said.

 From the US, Abby's parents responded to a wave of criticism for
letting her attempt her treacherous solo round-the-world journey --
saying the family were ``adventurers, not accountants''.

Abby left Los Angeles on January 23 in the hope of becoming the youngest
person to circumnavigate the globe solo, attempting to better Australian
Jessica Watson.

But she came to grief when her mast snapped and yacht rolled in
atrocious weather conditions on Thursday.

She was first spotted by rescuers late Friday in a chartered Qantas
Airbus after a 12-hour search that had already cost Australian taxpayers
more than $200,000.

And the bill to save the teenager was mounting last night as the
Australian Defence Force deployed two AP-3C Orion Maritime Patrol
Aircraft to the Cocos Islands in the Indian Ocean to assist in rescue
efforts.

WA's Fire and Emergency Services Authority taskforce leader Will
Blackshaw, who was on board the Qantas plane and part of the crew that
spoke to her on Friday, said she was ``in very good spirits''.

He said her first words, audible through the howling wind over the
radio, were a poignant: ``This is Abby''.

``It was a very happy moment for all of the people on board the plane,''
Mr Blackshaw said.

As rescuers revealed Australian taxpayers would foot the bill for
recovering the 16-year-old from one the world's most remote stretches of
ocean, her parents Maryanne and
Laurence Sunderland declared they were a proud family of adventurers.

However, they admitted Abby would probably never attempt such a
hazardous feat again.

``We don't live inside a box -- we do things,'' Mr Sunderland told News
Limited.

``Some people are accountants, some people are librarians, our family is
full of adventurers. I wouldn't want to try to turn them into librarians.''

Abby's brother Zac, 18, sailed solo around the world last year.

Abby had been attempting to become the youngest person to sail solo
around the world when her yacht lost its mast in rough weather 3700km
off WA late Thursday.

Australian rescuers commissioned the Qantas Airbus, for its ability to
fly long range, after she manually set off two emergency beacons.

Australian Maritime Safety Authority chief executive Mick Kinley did not
say how much the rescue mission would cost but said it would not be
seeking compensation for the search, which initially fell just outside
of Australia's search and rescue region.

``That's the way the system runs,'' Mr Kinley said. ``It's our
obligation to do this and we'll fulfill those obligations as Australia
does.''
Mrs Sunderland, who is heavily pregnant, said her little girl was aware
of the dangers.

``Abby is a very gifted, talented, passionate sailor,'' she said.

``It was her idea to do this -- she organised the sponsorship, it was
her dream and she was ready for it. Her boat was specifically
constructed to keep her safe in the southern ocean. We believe it's a
parent's right to decide what their kids are capable of and for our
family, we felt it was a good choice for Abby.''

Mr Sunderland insisted his daughter was capable of the task, having
grown up in a sailing family.

``They don't know Abigail or her upbringing, they don't know that this
is a part of Abigail's life, that she is a very tough young lady and
that she does understand the ocean. She's proven that because she's been
in very hazardous conditions prior to this event where she lost her
mast,'' he said.

However, Australian environmentalist and yachtsman Ian Kiernan said the
teenager's adventure was irresponsible.

Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, also took
a pot shot at Abby, saying the risk of adventure was sometimes too high
and costly to the public. The WA senator said it would always be the
Australian way to go to someone's aid when they needed it -- but the
financial costs were high.

``Clearly, it will be very expensive,'' he said. ``Obviously when
someone is at risk you have to respond. But I personally have a view
that we should be more careful about what we allow people to do in these
circumstances.''

Abby started sailing at six months of age and made her first solo trip
at age 13.

A French military vessel was also heading to her location last night.

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