SW-INC-0171SeaWise Incidents

Cookiecutter - Cookiecutter sharks holed an inflatable catamaran in the Coral Sea; a beacon brought a ship to the three crew

On a round-the-world attempt in a 9-metre inflatable catamaran, three sailors lost both hulls to repeated shark bites far off Cairns; they set off an emergency beacon and were recovered by a passing car carrier.

verified · 1 sourceN
Vessel
Cookiecutter30 ft · Inflatable catamaran
When
2023Coral Sea
Crew
3 aboardAll survived
Outcome
Rescued
Position
Coral Sea, about 519 nm south-east of Cairns, Queensland, Australia
Sea area
Coral Sea · off Cairns
Coordinates
-21.00°S, 152.00°EApproximate position
Summary

What happened.

In early September 2023, an inflatable catamaran on a round-the-world attempt was attacked by cookiecutter sharks in the Coral Sea, about 519 nautical miles south-east of Cairns. The bites holed both inflatable hulls over two days and sank the boat. The three crew — two Russians and a Frenchman — set off an emergency beacon and were recovered unharmed by a passing car carrier.

In early September 2023, three sailors were attempting to circumnavigate the world in a 9-metre inflatable catamaran and were on passage from Vanuatu toward Cairns when their boat was attacked by cookiecutter sharks in the Coral Sea, roughly 519 nautical miles south-east of Cairns. The small sharks bit into the catamaran's inflatable hulls: the rear-left hull was holed on the Monday and left submerged, and late on the Tuesday the right hull was bitten through as well, by what the crew estimated may have been more than thirty sharks. With the boat sinking under them, they set off an emergency beacon. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority coordinated the rescue, diverting a vehicle carrier that happened to be nearby, and all three — two Russians, including expedition leader Evgeny Kovalevsky, and a Frenchman, Vincent Thomas Garate — were taken off safely. The episode became a widely told story of an unusual offshore hazard and a textbook beacon-and-merchant-ship rescue.

ConditionsEarly September 2023, in the Coral Sea about 519 nm south-east of Cairns, Queensland. A 9-metre (30 ft) inflatable catamaran sailing from Vanuatu toward Cairns — crewed by two Russians (incl. Evgeny Kovalevsky) and a Frenchman, Vincent Thomas Garate, on an attempt to circle the globe by inflatable boat — was attacked by cookiecutter sharks. Bites holed the rear-left hull on the Monday, leaving it submerged, then the right hull late Tuesday; the crew reported possibly 30+ sharks. They set off an emergency beacon, and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority coordinated a recovery by a vehicle carrier that was nearby. All three were rescued unharmed.
SeaWise noteIt sounds freakish — sharks sinking a boat — but the lesson is ordinary: an unconventional craft has unconventional failure modes, and offshore there is no roadside assistance. What worked is exactly what works for every distant emergency: a beacon that brought a passing ship across miles of empty sea. Whatever you sail, the question is the same — if the hull fails out here, can you call for help, and can you last until it comes?
Lessons learned

What it teaches.

  • 1
    Offshore, a registered beacon is what turns a sinking into a rescue. These three were found far out in the Coral Sea only because they set off an emergency beacon, which let authorities divert a nearby ship. Carry an EPIRB and personal PLBs, register them, and keep them accessible as the boat goes down.
    abandon ship communications
  • 2
    Know your boat's failure modes — an unusual craft has unusual risks. An inflatable catamaran was sunk by bites to its hulls over two days. Understand how your hull can fail and how long it stays afloat, carry repair and buoyancy backups, and don't let novelty outrun your means of survival far from help.
    flooding abandon ship
  • 3
    Mid-ocean, your nearest help is often a passing merchant ship. A car carrier diverted to recover this crew. Keep AIS on so ships can see you, know how to raise them on VHF and through the rescue authorities, and plan to stay alive for the hours it takes a ship to reach you.
    rescue communications
Sources

Where this comes from.

News· Scandinavia & Germany sailing newsKatamaran angrepet av hai – mannskap reddet i siste litenVisit ↗

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Record IDSW-INC-0171
Curated bySeaWise editorial
Confidenceverified · 1 source
Record typeIncident

About SeaWise records: We catalogue sailing emergencies with structured metadata and link to primary sources rather than republishing them. Individual crew names are anonymised by default— sources we link to may name them publicly; SeaWise refers to roles ("the skipper", "the crew") on our pages. Submitter identities are always private.