Skipper Andrew Short was killed in the yacht crash. Picture: DALAS KILPONEN

Flinders Islet. Picture: ANDY ZAKELI

The yacht wreckage. Picture: ANDY ZAKELI

Well-known Sydney yachting identity Andrew Short and one of his female crew members were killed in the ocean off Port Kembla this morning when their yacht ran aground while competing in a race.Fifteen others had to be winched to safety off Flinders Islet after the yacht Shockwave, sponsored by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, crashed and sank about 3am.Mr Short, 48, of The Spit, and fellow experienced sailor Sally Gordon, 47, of Darling Point, were pulled unconscious from the water by crews from Sydney yachts Ragamuffin and Quest, which were also competing in the 92 nautical-mile Flinders Islet Race.

Rescuers pluck yacht crash survivors to safety

SLIDESHOW: Two killed in yacht race crashCrew members performed CPR on the pair, however they died at the scene.Mr Short and Ms Gordon were both veterans of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race, and were well known in sailing circles.Fifteen others from the stricken yacht managed to make their way to Flinders Islet, while water police plucked one man from the water alive. His condition is unknown.Among the injured was a 14-year-old boy who suffered burns to his hand.The survivors were winched from the island onto a rescue helicopter during the three-hour rescue operation and flown to the NSW Water Police base at Port Kembla where they were triaged.
View Yacht crash: two people killed in a larger mapThey were taken by ambulance to Wollongong Hospital suffering from minor cuts, bruises and hypothermia, while one person was treated for suspected spinal injuries.The 92 nautical-mile race started off at Point Piper on Sydney Harbour at 8pm on Friday, and the yacht - which has previously raced in the Sydney to Hobart event - ran aground about seven hours into the journey.Those on board the vessel activated a series of red flares about 2.55am on Saturday, which were noticed by competing yachts. Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA), which organises the race, said the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) and Wollongong water police were alerted and began searching the area. Ragamuffin and Quest went to help the PriceWaterhouseCoopers' crew, while Sydney yacht Yendys also detoured to help their competitors.Navigator Will Oxley said the crew of Yendys saw three flares as they were approaching the island. "We saw torchlight in the water too and people on (Flinders) Islet. We knew something was wrong, so we tacked towards them to see if we could give assistance,'' he said. "Ragamuffin and Quest were there too. (The yacht) Loki had rounded the Islet and was six miles away, but radioed to see if they could help."Mr Oxley said winds at Flinders Islet were in the 12-18 knot range from the south-west. The remaining boats in the fleet continued on in the race.Detective Superintendent Mark Hutchings said the rescue mission was very difficult. "Waves were about 2.3 metres, the sea was sloppy, but the wind was quite calm,'' he said. An investigation into the cause of the crash is being carried out, while Maritime Area Command police are preparing a report for the coroner.The stricken yacht was launched in 2000 as Shock Wave 5, and that year led the fleet into Bass Straight in the Sydney to Hobart race before retiring after hitting a sunfish. The yacht raced in North America until 2008, when it was brought back to Australia.In 2008 it won the 2008 Gosford to Lord Howe Race.Mr Short also ran an award-winning boating business, Andrew Short Marine, with three premises across Sydney.

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Port Kembla yacht crash: two dead, 16 rescued

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