Eight years after being dismasted and abandoned Abby Sunderland’s yacht is found.

Published 6 years ago, updated 5 years ago

On New Year’s Eve, an overturned vessel was spotted off the coast of Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The yacht has since been identified as the ‘Wild Eyes’.

The vessel was spotted about 12:30 pm on Monday 31 December. The vessel was seen from the air by a tuna spotting plane 11 nautical miles south of Vivonne Bay, Kangaroo Island. Two nearby fishing vessels and a police helicopter (PolAir) went to investigate.

The boat was previously abandoned eight and a half years ago on 10 June 2010 by solo sailor Abby Sutherland after being dismasted in rough seas during a round the world voyage. At the time Abby was halfway between the Western Australian coast and Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. She was attempting to become the youngest person to sail around the world solo.

On 12 June 2010, 16-year-old American sailor, Abby was successfully rescued by a French commercial fishing vessel with assistance from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. At the time the rescue made news headlines around the world.

Read more about Abby’s reaction to the discovery of ‘Wild Eyes’ at theguardian.com.