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Route du Rhum yacht sank in storm
The Class40 yacht 'Ekinox-Rhétorès' sank in the Atlantic Ocean on Nov 7, 2026, during the 13th edition of the Route du Rhum. The skipper, the 55-year-old French Benoît Sineau, was rescued safe and sound by the fellow competitor Jules Bonnier after a dramatic operation in severe weather. After battling harsh weather west of the Azores, Sineau set his alarm and lay down for a 45-minute nap. When he woke up, he discovered that a major, unexplained leak had completely flooded the interior of the vessel, with water reaching up to his chest and creating geysers inside the cabin. Because the water had risen so quickly, Sineau could not locate the source of the leak. He was forced to activate his EPIRB, as the boat lost power and rapidly became submerged. The race directors immediately coordinated a rescue operation, diverting several nearby vessels. The skipper Jules Bonnier, sailing the Class40 'Plastic Odyssey', was the first to arrive on the scene roughly two hours later. By the time Bonnier arrived at nightfall, the 'Ekinox-Rhétorès' was entirely underwater with only its mast still showing. In waves of seven metres height and 40-knot winds, Bonnier executed a perilous maneuver, throwing a life line to Sineau, who had to plunge into the ocean in his survival suit to escape the sinking yacht and climb aboard Bonnier's boat. He remaine aboard the 'Plastic Odyssey' as a passenger, as Bonnier continued the transatlantic race toward Guadeloupe. The cause of the sudden hull breach or massive water intake on the nearly brand-new 2025 Musa-40 yacht remained unknown. Report with photo: https://actu.fr/bretagne/saint-malo_35288/route-du-rhum-il-sest-vu-mourir-le-recit-du-sauvetage-heroique-de-benoit-sineau-par-jules-bonnier_65040634.html
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