Aug 24, 2007

BREAKING NEWS: Pacific rower airlifted to land

Roz Savage plans to resume crossing

By Kristina Peterson / Daily News Staff Writer

After nearly a full day of coaxing, U.S. Coast Guard rescuers in Humboldt Bay persuaded ocean rower Roz Savage to abandon her boat in rough waters - for now.

After being airlifted from her boat roughly 90 miles off the coast of Humboldt Bay Thursday night, Savage, 39, reportedly said she plans to resume her attempt to row solo across the Pacific Ocean as soon as her boat can be recovered and repaired.

Savage, an England native who did much of her training for the voyage in Woodside, is in good medical condition and resting at the Coast Guard barracks in Fort Bragg, said her spokesperson, Nicole Bilodeau.

"She's awake and eating for the first time," Bilodeau said.

Savage launched her attempt to become the first woman to cross the 7,600-mile-wide Pacific Ocean alone on Aug. 12. She had rowed alone across the Atlantic Ocean in the spring of 2006.

Bilodeau said Savage agreed to pause her journey only because of the high waves, strong wind and pounding rain.

This week, her boat capsized twice and her sea anchor and global positioning system broke.

In a blog entry posted Thursday on the Web site, http://www.rozsavage.com, Savage's mother Rita said her daughter discovered that her anchor was gone after the boat rolled again Wednesday night.

"Venturing out onto the deck to find out what Sid (the sea anchor) was doing, she found only six feet of rope attached to nothing," Rita Savage wrote.

Bilodeau said Savage bumped her head after the mechanism she uses to strap herself into the cabin was pulled out by the force of the waves.

"She said it was like a washing machine out there," Bilodeau said.
Rita Savage wrote, "Roz got very cold being out there, and is now lying in her wet sleeping bag, shivering."

On Thursday morning, a "concerned well-wisher" alerted the U.S. Coast Guard about Savage's condition, Bilodeau said, noting that the rower had firmly stated before launching that only Bilodeau, her mother, and a third friend were authorized to call in rescuers.

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Kevin Neff of the Alameda division said it took nearly all day Thursday to persuade Savage to be rescued.

"She was hesitant to come off the boat," Neff said.

Air Station Sacramento sent a C-130 aircraft Thursday morning to check Savage's condition and asked a nearby merchant vessel for assistance, Neff said. Officers discerned she was "still above the water and not in dire conditions," he said.

But concerns over the inclement weather, with winds around 35 mph and swelling waves, prompted the Coast Guard to return with an HH-65 Dolphin helicopter about 7 p.m. Thursday. Officers then used a basket to carry Savage out of her boat.

Though presently still out at sea, Savage's boat has four tagging devices so its coordinates are always known, Bilodeau said. Because the boat is able to self-right itself after capsizing, it is virtually "unsinkable," she added.

Savage and her support team plan to send out a commercial tow boat to recover the rowboat as soon as weather conditions improve, which is not likely to happen for at least three days.

"As soon as her boat is back and they install a new sea anchor, she wants to get back to sea as soon as possible," Bilodeau said.

E-mail Kristina Peterson at kpeterson@dailynewsgroup.com.