A sperm whale struck and sank a 16-metre yacht called Tai Tam about 250 nautical miles north of Norfolk Island in the South Pacific on a Saturday in 2026. All four crew members activated an emergency beacon, spent the night in a life raft, and were picked up roughly 18 hours later by a passing container ship.
A yacht sailing through the South Pacific sank after being struck by a sperm whale, forcing its four-person crew to abandon ship and spend a night adrift before being rescued. The collision was reported about 250 nautical miles north of Norfolk Island, according to CBS News and the Malaysian outlet New Straits Times, both citing accounts from the crew and New Zealand's Rescue Coordination Centre.
What happened
The 16-metre yacht, named Tai Tam, carried four sailors: Australians Jemma and Jeremy Cooper, New Zealander Terry Hetherington, and Frenchman Martin Jaffre, according to New Straits Times. Jemma Cooper, who was at the helm, described hearing a loud impact and feeling the boat suddenly pushed sideways, according to CBS News.
The crew then saw a pod of six to eight sperm whales near the yacht's port side, Cooper said, according to New Straits Times. The strike damaged the vessel's steering gear on the starboard side and tore multiple gashes into the fiberglass hull, letting in significant amounts of water, CBS News reported.
The rescue operation
About 30 minutes after the collision, around 1 p.m. New Zealand time on Saturday, the crew activated an emergency position-indicating radio beacon (EPIRB), CBS News reported. A Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon patrol plane was sent to the area to establish radio contact and help coordinate the response.
As water continued to flood the yacht, the crew abandoned it late Saturday night and moved into a life raft under calm seas and a full moon, according to CBS News. Early Sunday morning they cut the tether connecting the raft to the sinking yacht, which then went down. At around 6 a.m. Sunday, roughly 18 hours after the whale strike, a 143-metre container ship, the MV Sofrana Surville, reached the life raft and rescued all four sailors.
Mike Clulow, operations manager at New Zealand's Rescue Coordination Centre, said the operation succeeded because the crew was prepared, according to CBS News.
This was a well-coordinated and executed rescue. They were well prepared and the early activation of their EPIRB was key to helping get them to safety.
— Mike Clulow, Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand
Jeremy Cooper, reflecting on the loss of the boat, said the voyage had been largely positive despite its outcome and that no lives were lost, according to New Straits Times.
The collision happened about 250 nautical miles north of Norfolk Island in the South Pacific, according to CBS News and New Straits Times.
How many people were on board and were they hurt?
Four sailors were aboard — Jemma and Jeremy Cooper (Australian), Terry Hetherington (New Zealander) and Martin Jaffre (French) — and all were rescued with no reported injuries.
How long were the sailors adrift before rescue?
The crew spent roughly 18 hours between the whale strike and their rescue, including a stretch overnight in a life raft, according to CBS News.
Who rescued the crew?
A 143-metre container ship, the MV Sofrana Surville, picked up the four sailors from their life raft at around 6 a.m. Sunday, after a Royal New Zealand Air Force patrol plane helped coordinate the response.
What caused the yacht to sink?
A sperm whale from a pod of six to eight whales struck the 16-metre yacht Tai Tam, destroying its steering gear and tearing gashes in the hull that let in large amounts of water, according to crew accounts reported by CBS News.
How the world is telling it
ItalianItalian news agency ANSA covered the incident in a short video item headlined 'A sperm whale sinks a yacht, four sailors saved,' describing the vessel as an Australian-flagged yacht in the southern Pacific Ocean and confirming that all four crew members were rescued; the item did not include further details on the rescue timeline or direct quotes from the crew.
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