Australian Navy Rescues Rower Crossing Pacific from California

A Lithuanian rower attempting to cross the Pacific Ocean has been rescued by an Australian warship after hitting stormy waters off the coast of Queensland state.

Royal Australian Navy officer Justin Jones said in a statement that Aurimas Mockus was brought aboard the warship on March 3.

The 44-year-old adventurer began his trip alone in October from San Diego, California. He made it to within 740 kilometers of Australia’s mainland before running into a tropical cyclone.

Australia’s Maritime Safety Authority organized the rescue. It said the enclosed boat that Mockus traveled in was mostly destroyed by the powerful waters. He was only able to recover a few personal belongings from the boat.

Adventurer stranded for 3 days by storm

Mockus was stranded for three days in the Coral Sea east of Queensland’s coastal city of Mackay. His goal was to make it from California to the Australian state’s capital, Brisbane. The whole distance is about 12,000 kilometers.

The rower turned on an emergency signal while experiencing stormy seas fueled by 80-kilometer-per-hour winds caused by Tropical Cyclone Alfred. That led to rescuers establishing radio contact with Mockus. Mockus reported he was "fatigued," the team said.

Navy officials said the warship was taking Mockus to Sydney in New South Wales.

Rowers traveling by themselves have crossed the Pacific Ocean nonstop in the past. Mockus was attempting to become one of the few to cross the sea alone and without stopping.

Peter Bird of Britain became the first to do so in 1983. He rowed from San Francisco and was pulled behind another boat for the last 48 kilometers to the Australian mainland. Even though he did not complete the whole trip alone, he is considered to have rowed close enough to Australia to have made the crossing.

Fellow British citizen John Beeden rowed from San Francisco to the Queensland city of Cairns in 2015. He is considered by some to have made the first successful crossing.

Australian Michelle Lee became the first woman to successfully make the crossing in 2023. She rowed from the Mexican coastal city of Ensenada to Port Douglas in Queensland.

Another Australian, Tom Robinson, attempted to become the youngest to row across the Pacific in 2022. He was 24 years old at the time. During his trip, Robinson took a rest in the Cook Islands. He set out from Peru and spent 265 days at sea before he was rescued off the southwestern Pacific nation of Vanuatu in 2023.

I’m Jill Robbins.

Rod McGuirk reported this story for the Associated Press. Jill Robbins adapted it for Learning English.

row – v. to move a boat through water using oars

adventurer – n. someone who likes dangerous or exciting experiences

strand – v. to leave (a person or animal) in a place without a way of leaving it — usually used as (be) stranded

fatigued – adj. tired — usually used as (be) fatigued

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