This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . The next check for changes will be
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/mar/03/navy-ship-on-rescue-mission-for-stranded-ocean-rower-aurimas-mockus-off-australias-east-coast
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Navy ship on rescue mission for stranded ocean rower Aurimas Mockus off Australia’s east coast | Navy ship on rescue mission for stranded ocean rower Aurimas Mockus off Australia’s east coast |
| (31 minutes later) | |
| Lithuanian ocean rower’s two-day wait to be rescued off Australia’s east coast due to end | Lithuanian ocean rower’s two-day wait to be rescued off Australia’s east coast due to end |
| A rescue ship is expected to arrive in the Coral Sea off Australia’s east coast, where a Lithuanian rower has been caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. | A rescue ship is expected to arrive in the Coral Sea off Australia’s east coast, where a Lithuanian rower has been caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. |
| Aurimas Mockus ran into trouble about 740km east of Mackay while attempting a 12,000km Pacific Ocean crossing from San Diego to Brisbane in his solo rowing boat. | Aurimas Mockus ran into trouble about 740km east of Mackay while attempting a 12,000km Pacific Ocean crossing from San Diego to Brisbane in his solo rowing boat. |
| He activated his emergency beacon late on Friday as Tropical Cyclone Alfred sent strong winds and heavy seas his way. | He activated his emergency beacon late on Friday as Tropical Cyclone Alfred sent strong winds and heavy seas his way. |
| A Cairns-based Challenger jet didn’t spot the tiny vessel on Saturday but managed to make contact with Mockus, who said he was tired. | A Cairns-based Challenger jet didn’t spot the tiny vessel on Saturday but managed to make contact with Mockus, who said he was tired. |
| The Australian Maritime Safety Authority shared images of the boat on Sunday and confirmed it had communicated with the adventurer via the rescue aircraft through an interpreter. | The Australian Maritime Safety Authority shared images of the boat on Sunday and confirmed it had communicated with the adventurer via the rescue aircraft through an interpreter. |
| “Mr Mockus has reported he has no major injuries,” it said in a statement on Sunday afternoon. | “Mr Mockus has reported he has no major injuries,” it said in a statement on Sunday afternoon. |
| HMAS Choules, a 16,000-tonne Royal Australian Navy landing ship, left Brisbane on Saturday to assist and was expected to arrive on Monday morning. | HMAS Choules, a 16,000-tonne Royal Australian Navy landing ship, left Brisbane on Saturday to assist and was expected to arrive on Monday morning. |
| Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email | Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email |
| Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email | Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email |
| A statement from Mockus’s shore team on Sunday night confirmed Mockus was not injured. | A statement from Mockus’s shore team on Sunday night confirmed Mockus was not injured. |
| “Acccording to the traveler, he has not suffered any serious injuries, is shoveling water from the boat, and is asking for help as soon as possible.” | “Acccording to the traveler, he has not suffered any serious injuries, is shoveling water from the boat, and is asking for help as soon as possible.” |
| But the team said the situation was “stable and under control”. “Direct communication with the rescuers is maintained at all times,” they said. | |
| Mockus set off on the journey in October and was days away from reaching his final destination after rowing about 70 nautical miles a day. He was bracing for the “maximum power” of the cyclone on Thursday, saying he just needed to survive the next two days. | |
| Sign up to Breaking News Australia | |
| Get the most important news as it breaks | |
| after newsletter promotion | |
| Weather conditions have since eased but the Coral Sea was still within the category two cyclone’s influence on Sunday, with winds up to 100km/h and five to seven-metre seas, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority reported. | Weather conditions have since eased but the Coral Sea was still within the category two cyclone’s influence on Sunday, with winds up to 100km/h and five to seven-metre seas, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority reported. |
| Mockus was attempting to join a short list of ocean rowers to make the Pacific crossing solo without stopping. | |
| Brit Peter Bird was the first in 1983, followed by countryman John Beeden in 2015 and Australian Michelle Lee in 2023. | Brit Peter Bird was the first in 1983, followed by countryman John Beeden in 2015 and Australian Michelle Lee in 2023. |
| Fellow Australian Tom Robinson, who was attempting to become the youngest to accomplish the feat albeit with a break in the Cook Islands, spent 265 days at sea before he was rescued off Vanuatu in 2023. | Fellow Australian Tom Robinson, who was attempting to become the youngest to accomplish the feat albeit with a break in the Cook Islands, spent 265 days at sea before he was rescued off Vanuatu in 2023. |
| The 24-year-old Queenslander’s rowboat capsized, leaving him clinging naked to the hull for about 14 hours before he was rescued by a cruise ship that made a 200km detour. | The 24-year-old Queenslander’s rowboat capsized, leaving him clinging naked to the hull for about 14 hours before he was rescued by a cruise ship that made a 200km detour. |