Three men on a French-registered yacht were rescued yesterday in gale force winds and mountainous seas from a point some 75 nautical miles off the south Maltese coast, said a spokesman from the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM).

The Italian coastguard’s rescue coordination centre in Rome informed the AFM’s operations centre (RCC Malta) about the yacht’s distress in the stormy sea at about 1am. At the time, the yacht was reported to be located about 90 nautical miles south

The 28-foot sailing yacht, My Samod Sea, had left Crete about six days ago and the three-man crew consisted of the 77-year-old Dutch skipper, an Italian and an Australian.

Crew on the MV Arcangelo initially attempted to assist the yachtsmen, but did not manage due to the high freeboard on their larger vessel.

Weather conditions in the area were a prohibitive Gregale (north-easterly) gale force eight, with a reported swell of over five metres.

Given this situation, RCC Malta coordinated the dispatch of an Italian Navy SH-3D helicopter from their Catania base.

However, the helicopter had to return to base for refuelling due to adverse weather conditions. It was immediately replaced by another Italian Air Force HH-3F rescue helicopter from Trapani, which was also obliged to make a hasty landing for refuelling at Malta’s airport.

It was a third aircraft, the Italian Navy SH-3D rescue helicopter, that finally managed to successfully recover two of the three yachtsmen between 7 and 8.20am, from a position about 75 nautical miles off the Malta coast (about 80 nautical miles south-east of Capo Passero in Sicily).

The locally-based Italian Military Mission’s AB 212 helicopter, operated by a joint Italo-Maltese flight crew, was also placed on standby.

It had to be dispatched to the Craig General Hospital in Victoria, at about 8.45am to conduct a medical evacuation of a patient who required urgent treatment at Mater Dei Hospital.

Later in the morning, the yacht’s skipper, who had previously refused to be airlifted, was rescued by the Malta-bound oil rig vessel, MVm Saipem-FDS, which was expected to berth in Marsaxlokk at about 10 last night.

Meanwhile, the AFM’s Melita 2 was also deployed to Sliema Creek, where two vessels owned by Captain Morgan Cruises, the Fernandez 2 and the Marianne, had broken off from their moorings, damaging smaller vessels in their immediate radius in the process.

Man rescued from

wave-swept car

A 70-year-old Valletta man had to be rescued from his car that was swept off the road by a wave yesterday morning.

The accident happened in Valletta, in the area known as il-Fossa, the police said in a statement, adding that the man escaped unharmed.

The car was swept towards the rocks and after the man was rescued, the road was closed until the car was recovered.

Members of the police corps’ Special Assignment Group were assisted by members of the Civil Protection Department.

The north-eastern gale force winds, which are expected to de down by this morning, affected the whole eastern coast as the sea washed over beaches and roads, sweeping up stones, rubbish, seaweed and even fishing nets.

One of the hardest hit areas was the Sliema–St Julian’s area, where small boats were swept ashore and big waves caused extensive damage to roads and buildings on the coast. Many of the boats were broken to pieces.

The police said vehicles driving along Spinola Road, St Julian’s, in the direction of Sliema, had to be diverted towards Regional Road due to the bad weather.

Man hit by water tank blown off roof

In Main Road, St Julian’s, a 59-year-old Italian suffered slight injuries when the police said he was hit by a water-tank, which had been blown off a roof.

Grand Harbour was also closed to traffic and commercial operations yesterday. A spokesman from the Malta Maritime Authority said two cargo ships were expected to enter the port later in the evening; it was not yet known if they would be able to enter the port due to bad weather conditions.

Cranes at the Freeport were also out of use due to bad weather conditions yesterday and eight cargo ships were waiting for the winds to calm down before entering Marsaxlokk port.