BOWLINE

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Crew members of two yachts killed by booms

Two experienced sailors were killed in separate incidents in the Sydney to Hobart race. Both crew members died after they were suspected to have been hit by the sail boom. One of them, Nick Smith from South Australia, has been hit by the boat's mainsheet and thrown across the boat, hitting his head on the winch. Smith, 65, was a crew member of the 'Bowline', competing in the race for the fifth time. A few hours later a crew member on the 'Flying Fish Arctos' was struck by a sail boom and died. He was identified as Roy Quaden, 55, a sailor with two decades of experience from Western Australia. The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia will do an investigation. Bad weather has forced several boats to retire from the 79th running of the race, which began on Dec 27. The last loss of life in the race came in 1998 when five yachts were sunk and six sailors died after a major storm hit the fleet.