Boat collision victims released from hospital

Injured people are unloaded at Picton in the Marlborough Sounds. Photo / Supplied

Eight people hurt in a collision between two boats in the Marlborough Sounds yesterday have been discharged from hospital.

A Dolphin Watch catamaran crashed into an Outward Bound training cutter about 2.10pm yesterday, leaving 11 trainees in the water as the 7m vessel sank in the Queen Charlotte Sound, about 20 minutes out of Picton.

A 29-year-old woman with a broken leg and a 27-year-old woman with a suspected broken ankle, both from Whangarei, were airlifted to Wellington Hospital by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.

The 29-year-old turned out to have suffered only a sprained ankle and was discharged later yesterday afternoon, while the woman with the broken leg was released today.

Six other trainees were taken to Blenheim's Wairau Hospital by ambulance yesterday for treatment for cuts and bruises, while the 18 people aboard the catamaran escaped unhurt.

"We are pleased and relieved to advise that none of the students have sustained any serious injuries," Outward Bound chief executive Trevor Taylor said today.

All students affected by the incident, aged from 18 to 30, were being offered counselling.

Mr Taylor said all but the two Whangarei women would complete the eight-day course, which started on January 31. The cutter scheme and the final components of the course had been cut short due to the incident.

Police said yesterday that the trainees aboard the cutter saw the Dophin Watch boat approaching and tried unsuccessfully to alert the skipper it was on a collision course.

The trainees were rescued from the water and ferried to Picton by a boat from nearby Lochmara Lodge and by the Dolphin Watch boat.

Outward Bound said earlier today it understood the cutter was stationary when the collision occurred.

"Participants had been briefed on what to do in the event of an emergency before embarking on the cutter," Mr Taylor said.

The cutter had all required emergency equipment on board and all trainees were wearing lifejackets and were rescued within 10 minutes of the collision.

Dolphin Watch said the boat's experienced skipper, who was a well-known Picton man, had been stood down while police and the Maritime Safety Authority investigated the incident.

- NZPA