Two people who were part of Australia’s annual Sydney to Hobart yacht race have died in separate incidents, according to police.
Both crew members died in separate incidents after being struck by the boom – a large pole attached to the bottom of the sail.
The organizers of this event said that these incidents happened at Flying Fish Arctos and Bowline.
The first boats are expected to arrive in the city of Hobart, Tasmania, later Friday or early Saturday. Many have already retired due to bad weather.
New South Wales (NSW) police said the first incident was reported to police shortly before midnight Thursday local time (12:50 GMT) by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority in the country’s capital, Canberra.
Just two hours later, at 02:15 on Friday, NSW police were told that crew on the second boat were giving CPR to the second person, which also did not work.
The Flying Fish Arctos was sailing about 30km east/southeast of the NSW town of Ulladulla, organizers said.
Bowline, on the other hand, was about 30 nautical miles east/northeast of the town of Batemans Bay, also in NSW.
“Our thoughts are with the staff, family and friends of the deceased,” organizers said in a statement.
The race that started on Thursday is still going on.
It is not the first time that there have been deaths in this race which was first held in 1945.
Six people, including British Olympic rower Glyn Charles, died in 1998 after severe storms hit competitors.
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