Battered solo yachtswoman awaits rescue in Pacific

A British solo around-the-world sailor whose yacht was crippled in a ferocious storm as she crossed the Pacific has stabilized her battered vessel and is awaiting rescue, race organizers said Friday.

Susie Goodall was briefly knocked unconscious when mountainous seas upended her yacht “DHL Starlight” early Thursday, tearing off its mast and trashing much of her equipment.

Goodall was attempting to navigate the southern Pacific’s notorious Roaring Forties at the time as part of the Golden Globe Race.

The 29-year-old, the youngest competitor in the race and the only woman, sent frantic text messages to race organizers throughout her ordeal.

“Taking a hammering! Wondering what on Earth I’m doing out here,” she texted as the storm hit.

When concerned organizers finally managed to contact her by satellite phone several hours later, she confirmed her boat had been dismasted but said the hull had not been breached.

“The boat is destroyed. I can’t make up a jury rig,” she said. “The only thing left is the hull and deck which remain intact.

“We were pitch poled (rolled end over end) and I was thrown across the cabin and knocked out for a while.”

Race organizers said Chilean rescue authorities had diverted a Chinese container ship “Tian Fu” to pick up Goodall as she patched up her crippled vessel.

They said that while “beaten up and badly bruised” she was safe and had managed to bring flooding under control and get her engine going, giving her some maneuverability when the rescue ship arrives.

In text updates, Goodall said she endured “a looong night”.

“In need of a good cuppa tea! But sadly no cooker,” she messaged.

The Golden Globe Race involves a grueling 30,000-mile solo circumnavigation of the globe in yachts similar to those used in the first race 50 years ago, with no modern technology allowed except the communications equipment.

Entrants set off from France on July 1 and are expected to finish in April next year.

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