Surf Life Saving WA chopper rescues group from sinking boat off Cape Naturaliste coast

A group of people are counting their lucky stars after being rescued from a sinking boat in treacherous waters off the coast of WA’s South-West on Saturday morning. Surf Life Saving WA rescued four people with the help of the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter after their boat started taking on water off Cape Naturaliste — about 14km north-west of Dunsborough. The chopper dropped a smoke flare and sea dye before summoning a nearby boat until marine rescue arrived. In 2021, South West police issued a stern warning to young people to remember the seriousness of water safety after a joke gone wrong left a 14-year-old girl needing to be rescued when a dinghy she was in drifted out to sea. The girl was “mucking around” with three other friends near the Koombana Sailing Club on Sunday evening when it is believed she hopped into the dinghy and a friend pushed the boat away from the jetty as a joke. However, the boat began quickly drifting out to sea and the teen, who could not swim, was left 150m offshore. Luckily, two police officers launched into action, stripping down and plunging into the ocean to tow the boat back and bring the young girl to safety. “The boat was half full of water but still buoyant by the time we dragged it in,” police said at the time. “The main takeaway is the kids on shore did not realise how serious it was.”