PORT PRINCESS

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Dolphin cruise boat sank on delivery voyage to Melbourne

The "Port Princess" sank in the afternoon of May 16, 2017, on its way from Port Adelaide bound for Melbourne. Four crew members were rescued from the the tourist boat which got in trouble off Port MacDonnell, south of Mount Gambier, in the morning at 6.30 a.m. 11 nautical miles south of Nene Valley. It started taking on water after the engine failed, which was a result of rough seas over the past three days en route to Victoria. The water might have knocked the propeller around and enabled water to get up drive shaft, casing the fan belt to fail which in turn stopped the water pump and caused the motor to boil over. The ship had the wind up the tail, so while the crew was trying to pump the water out, it just kept coming at the back. They couldn't turn the boat away to take it away from the wind and the big waves. A cray-fishing boat, the "San Miguel", set sail from Port MacDonnell and located the sinking ship. Its crew safely transferred the four crew members from the "Port Princess" before it sank. SHe undertook dolphin cruises in the Port River and the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary for 20 years. In recent years the business' income had dropped and it was also in competition with another boat on the wharf. Captain Brian Thomas has undertaken dolphin cruises on the Port River since 1993 before the ship was sold to an interstate buyer, and he was looking forward to retirement. The rescued crew reached shore at Port MacDonnell by mid-afternoon and paramedics were waiting there to treat them, but no-one was injured. Report with photos: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-16/four-men-rescued-from-sinking-port-princess/8530672