Sailors Rescued in Round-the-World Yacht Race

Two injured sailors have been rescued after a "monstrous foaming swell" washed over an Australian boat participating in a 10-team round-the-world yacht race. Two others in the 18-person crew also seriously hurt were still on board yesterday off the coast of California. The Geraldton Western Australia is expected to dock in San Francisco within the day, reports the BBC. One of those rescued by a Coast Guard cutter was the boat's medic, 50, who suffered broken ribs when the mammoth wave hit. Earlier, a transport aircraft dropped medical supplies and oxygen to aid the injured sailors—three Britons and an Australian.

A Coast Guard spokesman refused to go into further details, but added: "The amount of effort that we're putting in is commensurate with serious injuries." The wave also washed away the boat's steering wheel and some communication equipment. The Clipper Round-the-World Yacht Race is a 40,000-mile contest that started in Southhampton last July, and is expected to end there this July. The Geraldton Western Australia is currently in last place. (More Clipper Round the World Yacht Race stories.)