Abandon ship at sea.
Documented abandon ship incidents from the Logbook — 8 records, each with sources, lessons, and the SeaWise procedures that address it.
← Search & filter the full LogbookAbandoning is the last resort, and the accounts here show it is rarely the sinking that kills — it is a rushed, unprepared evacuation. The crews who came through stepped up into the raft, not down into the water: they briefed, dressed, transmitted a position, launched deliberately, and accounted for everyone. Deciding early, while the deck is still stable, is what keeps an abandon-ship orderly.
On the evening of 30 June 2026 a sailing yacht sank about five miles west of Kefalonia in calm weather. The two Italians aboard abandoned in good time into the yacht's own tender and were picked up by a passing private vessel, escorted ashore by a Hellenic Coast Guard patrol boat. Both were unhurt; the cause is under investigation.
In November 2025 the sailing yacht Magic Bus, bound from Stonington, Connecticut to the Bahamas, began flooding about 260 nautical miles off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Her five crew abandoned into a life raft, were located by a Coast Guard HC-130, and were all lifted off by an MH-60 helicopter — refuelled via the carrier USS George H.W. Bush — unhurt.
On 10 October 2025, about 50 nautical miles off Peniche, Portugal, orcas battered the rudder of the French-flagged sloop Ti'fare. The helm spun freely and within roughly 20 minutes the boat was flooding faster than the pumps could handle. The family of five aboard — two adults and three children — abandoned to a life raft, were picked up by a fishing boat, and were airlifted to safety by the Portuguese Air Force, unhurt.
The 40 ft J/122 Alliance struck a submerged object in the Gulf Stream around 2:45 a.m. on the third day of the 2024 Newport Bermuda Race, roughly 300 nm from land; she flooded and was lost, but all nine aboard were taken off by two competing boats that answered the Mayday.
The Bavaria 47 Essence was abandoned and sank in 7.5-metre seas 25 nautical miles N-NE of Cape Brett; three of four crew survived.
The 42 ft monohull Rauruahine was abandoned 80 nm WNW of Cape Reinga after a chainplate failure flooded the saloon; crew of two recovered by container ship.
Italian-built 54 ft carbon racer; keel fastenings gave way en route Maldives → Red Sea, the yacht inverted in under 30 seconds — the couple drifted nine days in a leaking liferaft before a Belgian tug spotted them.
On 2 June 2005 the 277 m container ship OOCL Malaysia was outbound from Southampton when the pilot saw the 6.7 m wooden yacht Ibis about to enter the moving prohibited zone ahead. A launch was sent to tell Ibis to hold clear, but her singlehanded skipper tacked, lost the wind, and was caught in the ship's path. He jumped clear and was picked up by the launch; Ibis was run down and foundered. No one was hurt.