Stranded sailors face two-day wait for rescue

A pair of stranded yachtsmen halfway between New Zealand and Chile have to wait three days for help to arrive.

Rescue Coordination Centre NZ (RCCNZ) was contacted at 5.42am today by their counterparts in Chile after the men called for help on a satellite phone.

The men, aged 65 and 35, were Italian nationals sailing in a 34-foot steel-hulled yacht called Onitron, RCCNZ spokeswoman Sarah Brazil said.

It was not known where their journey originated or what their intended destination was.

The mast of their yacht had snapped and was hanging over the side of their boat, and the motor was broken.

An oil tanker was the closest available boat and was on its way to rescue the men, but was still 800 nautical miles away.

It would take around three days to reach the men, and may deliver them to Argentina, or help repair their mast, Ms Brazil said.

The men had enough food and water to last seven to 10 days, and had an eight-man lifeboat on board.

They had a locator beacon they would activate if they lost satellite contact.

Ms Brazil said RCCNZ was coordinating the operation, and while the New Zealand navy and air force weren't involved, that could change if the men got into trouble.

The mayday call came from close to the furtherest eastern extremity within New Zealand's search and rescue area, Ms Brazil said.

- NZPA