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OFFSHORE Superboat competitor Chris Hanley is recovering in hospital after his craft capsized in the Newcastle Harbour on Sunday afternoon.
Mr Hanley was on board Global Racing’s 1000 horse power supercat with teammate Andrew Koolan when the craft suddenly flipped in the last race of the Offshore Superboat Championships.
Organisation president Graham Fraser said the superboat was heading out of the harbour on the final lap when it ‘‘barrel-rolled’’.
Mr Fraser said he believed the craft may have been hit by a wave. ‘‘The boat wasn’t rounding a marker, it was just heading straight out,’’ Mr Fraser said. ‘‘It looks like it was hit by a wave, which happens in offshore racing.’’
A witness said the crash occurred ‘‘right at the mouth of the harbour where the swell starts’’.
He said the boat was ‘‘thrown from right to left’’, but managed to roll back upright immediately. The windscreen had shattered and the boat had begun to take on water.
Marine Area Command boats rushed to the stricken craft and a paramedic on board treated Mr Hanley and Mr Koolan. Police said they arrived to find Mr Hanley, 43, unconscious in the vessel. The pair were then taken to the Marine Area Command base at Carrington before Mr Hanley was taken to John Hunter Hospital by ambulance. He was believed to be in a stable condition, police said. Mr Koolan suffered only minor injuries.
Mr Koolan is listed as the team’s driver and Mr Hanley the ‘‘throttle man’’ on the Offshore Superboat Championships website.
Organisers of the competition offered their best wishes to Mr Hanley on Facebook.
‘‘A racing incident involving Global Racing on the last lap of race 2 has crew member Chris Hanley in hospital under the best care he can receive, team mate Andrew Koolan suffered minor injuries,’’ a post on the Offshore Superboat Championships Facebook page read. ‘‘The Offshore community wish Chris and Andrew a speedy recovery.’’
The Newcastle-based Maritimo team also offered their support.
‘‘All the team at Maritimo Newcastle send their best wishes to Chris, his family and the entire Global Racing Team,’’ the post on Facebook read.
‘‘Get well soon and we all look forward to seeing you back out on the water soon.’’
The boat sustained significant damage, Mr Fraser said. It was slowly towed into shore and had taken on a lot of water. Mr Fraser said the competition had emergency protocols in place and crews were on the scene within minutes.
The event, the first of a six-race series, was scheduled to end at the end of the race. A Gold Coast-based team, Global Racing had finished second in the Supercat 1000 class on Saturday behind Team 3.
The Newcastle Herald reported in 2014 that for the first time in 20years, organisers had changed the course for the Offshore Superboat Championships. The new circuit started in Newcastle Harbour and raced through the heads and back.
Photos and complete story: http://www.theherald.com.au/story/3083819/superboat-capsizes-crewman-taken-to-hospital/
Mr Hanley was on board Global Racing’s 1000 horse power supercat with teammate Andrew Koolan when the craft suddenly flipped in the last race of the Offshore Superboat Championships.
Organisation president Graham Fraser said the superboat was heading out of the harbour on the final lap when it ‘‘barrel-rolled’’.
Mr Fraser said he believed the craft may have been hit by a wave. ‘‘The boat wasn’t rounding a marker, it was just heading straight out,’’ Mr Fraser said. ‘‘It looks like it was hit by a wave, which happens in offshore racing.’’
A witness said the crash occurred ‘‘right at the mouth of the harbour where the swell starts’’.
He said the boat was ‘‘thrown from right to left’’, but managed to roll back upright immediately. The windscreen had shattered and the boat had begun to take on water.
Marine Area Command boats rushed to the stricken craft and a paramedic on board treated Mr Hanley and Mr Koolan. Police said they arrived to find Mr Hanley, 43, unconscious in the vessel. The pair were then taken to the Marine Area Command base at Carrington before Mr Hanley was taken to John Hunter Hospital by ambulance. He was believed to be in a stable condition, police said. Mr Koolan suffered only minor injuries.
Mr Koolan is listed as the team’s driver and Mr Hanley the ‘‘throttle man’’ on the Offshore Superboat Championships website.
Organisers of the competition offered their best wishes to Mr Hanley on Facebook.
‘‘A racing incident involving Global Racing on the last lap of race 2 has crew member Chris Hanley in hospital under the best care he can receive, team mate Andrew Koolan suffered minor injuries,’’ a post on the Offshore Superboat Championships Facebook page read. ‘‘The Offshore community wish Chris and Andrew a speedy recovery.’’
The Newcastle-based Maritimo team also offered their support.
‘‘All the team at Maritimo Newcastle send their best wishes to Chris, his family and the entire Global Racing Team,’’ the post on Facebook read.
‘‘Get well soon and we all look forward to seeing you back out on the water soon.’’
The boat sustained significant damage, Mr Fraser said. It was slowly towed into shore and had taken on a lot of water. Mr Fraser said the competition had emergency protocols in place and crews were on the scene within minutes.
The event, the first of a six-race series, was scheduled to end at the end of the race. A Gold Coast-based team, Global Racing had finished second in the Supercat 1000 class on Saturday behind Team 3.
The Newcastle Herald reported in 2014 that for the first time in 20years, organisers had changed the course for the Offshore Superboat Championships. The new circuit started in Newcastle Harbour and raced through the heads and back.
Photos and complete story: http://www.theherald.com.au/story/3083819/superboat-capsizes-crewman-taken-to-hospital/
