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An Australian family of eight was just 15 minutes from their holiday destination off the coast of Queensland when the ship they were traveling on began to sink.
The extended family, which included a 6-month-old baby and two children, were forced to abandon the sinking ship by an inflatable boat on Sunday.
With rescue planes circling overhead and the Yeppoon Voluntary Marine Rescue in sight, the family remained in good spirits. In a video taken by James Nugent, someone off-screen can be heard joking that “we lost all the beer!”
After being in the water for an hour and a half, Nugent said Storyful that “they couldn’t wait to be rescued.”
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He added that those who were floating in the water outside the dingy suffered “some chemical burns” from the fuel in the water.
James Nugent via Storyful / ap
The family remained optimistic despite the ordeal.
Talking to Age, a spokesperson for the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said: “The ship had eight people on board and was taking in water and sinking, the passengers put on life jackets and left the ship.”
– Storyful via AP
