A capsize in the Indian Ocean
On the night of Saturday, September 12, the trimaran Mod70 Race for The Water was heading towards the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean when it capsized, 90 miles southeast of the archipelago. The crew was rescued two days later by the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) vessel Pacific Marlin and was assisted by the U.S. military base in Diego Garcia.
"The sailing conditions were very difficult for several days, as is often the case in the Indian Ocean. A big swell, waves of several meters, a crew tired by the 32,000 miles of navigation already done (Editor's note: a distance greater than a classic round the world race) are all factors that led to this unfortunate accident. The crew is unhurt, fortunately, and we all agree that the expedition must continue. My priority now is to recover the trimaran" explained Stève Ravussin.
Save the boat
Only one hour after their rescue, the sailors and men of the Pacific Marlin then tried to turn the trimaran over to be able to convoy it to the base of Diego Garcia. Unfortunately, after several unsuccessful attempts, it was finally decided to bring the boat back upside down. The mast and the ropes were disassembled in order to bring the trimaran back more easily. It could finally be righted at the entrance of the base. After 10 days spent on the base and 5 days of sailing under jury rig between the Chagos and the Maldives, the trimaran finally reached Malé on September 30th.
This is the end of the adventure for this boat, as it will be submitted to an expertise and repatriated to France as soon as possible, to be restored as soon as possible.
"The whole crew is relieved to finally reach Malé, after two particularly intense weeks, between the capsizing, the turnaround operations and this last navigation under jury rig. We were aware that the mission would be complicated when we accepted it, but we also knew that the cause was worth the risk. Today, we must look to the future. The crew is unharmed, the trimaran will be repatriated and we all agree that the expedition must continue. We will join the shore teams on the remaining stopovers once the trimaran is on its way to Europe. Ocean pollution by plastics is a real environmental disaster, it is crucial to continue the project. Our misadventure will not have been in vain" commented the Swiss skipper on his arrival.
The project continues despite everything
It was the will of the whole team to continue the project and the crew will therefore embark on the next stages, without its ambassador boat. After a stopover in Rodrigues, which showed how much the ocean was polluted by plastic, the teams will go to Cape Town (from October 12 to 18), Rio de Janeiro (from November 4 to 12) and will return to Bordeaux, to finish the expedition.
