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A Royal Australian Navy ship is bound for the Coral Sea after a Lithuanian man attempting to row across the Pacific Ocean from San Diego to Brisbane got into trouble.
Aurimas Mockus activated his emergency beacon on Friday night about 740km east of Mackay, Queensland, and 90km west of Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
He is travelling solo on the rowing boat from the Californian city to Brisbane and was battling winds of 80km/h and heavy seas when he called for help, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa) said.
A Cairns-based Challenger jet didn’t spot the vessel on Saturday but managed to make contact with Mockus, who said he was tired.
An aircraft was sent from Royal Australian Air Force Base Edinburgh near Adelaide and another will be dispatched on Sunday to maintain communications.
HMAS Choules, a 16,000-tonne navy landing ship, is en route from Brisbane to the Coral Sea to assist.
“Further information on the condition of the rower and his boat will be sought from him today,” an Amsa spokesperson said on Sunday.
Weather conditions had eased near the Coral Sea but it was still within the influence of the cyclone – which was about 510km east of Rockhampton on Sunday morning.
The category two cyclone was forecast to move south, roughly parallel to the coastline, on Sunday before weakening slightly and moving to the south-east on Monday.
It was then expected to slow and turn west from Tuesday, travelling back towards the southern Queensland coast.
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The Bureau of Meteorology said strong to gale-force winds could impact K’gari, also known as Fraser Island, on Sunday.
If Mockus makes it to Queensland, he would be the first person to row across the Pacific on this particular route, he has said. If he reached Australia in less than 22 days from Sunday he would set a new Guinness record.
A small group of people have crossed the Pacific single-handed, including the Britons Peter Bird in 1983 and John Beeden in 2015, and the Australian Michelle Lee in 2023.
Also in 2023, 24-year-old Tom Robinson attempted the feat but was rescued by a cruise ship after his boat capsized. In 2020, the Paralympic rowing star Angela Madsen died while attempting a solo journey from California to Hawaii.
