South Yorkshire grandfather Chris Pearsall rescued after his yacht sinks in Mediterranean solo voyage drama

But he got more than he bargained for when he found himself alone on his boat and sinking in the Mediterranean Sea.

Chris, who gave up a successful landscaping business several years ago to become a writer, had recently completed his novel, The Making of Harry Manning, and had given himself an early birthday treat ahead of his 60th next year, of some serious sailing time on his boat, Emma Rose.

But it ended in a drama he did not want when his boat sank in the sea between the islands of Crete and Cyprus, leaving him stranded in a small life raft, desperate to be rescued.

His partner, Allison, had headed back to England, leaving him sailing solo last month after they had enjoyed a trip around the Greek islands together.

But things took a turn for the worse during the night of November 6.

The dad-of-two and grandfather-of-one had been a few days into sailing towards Cyprus and set off at 7am, under a cloudless sky.

At 9.30pm he decided to set a course for Rhodes town on the north-east tip of Rhodes, 80 miles away, to refuel and if need be, spend a few days exploring the nearby islands waiting for the next weather window and a chance to leap off to Cyprus, and from there to Beirut.

Sailing to Rhodes

He expected to be in Rhodes soon after dawn.

He said: “I had promised myself an adventure, an early gift to myself for my 60th birthday next March. Beirut was my target, an iconic city that filled the news during my childhood. The home office said it was safe and Airbnb said it was affordable. I had to go. The delay was a little frustrating, but my commitment to my family was ‘I’ll be home for Christmas.’ I had plenty of time.”

Chris, from Barnsley, added: “At 12.30 am, I hit something. Whatever it was, it hit the starboard side. There were three distinct bangs. I looked over the side but could see nothing. Whatever it was must have had a fair amount of weight, because the boat lurched to port at the first strike. The log (speed indicator) had stopped, which must mean that the impeller (small paddle wheel that rotates to measure speed) must have been damaged.

“Not critical in itself – the Navionics app on my phone is more accurate, but it could indicate damage to the hull. I went below to investigate."

“Lifting my bed base, I was alarmed to find the space underneath was already full of water. As quickly as I could, I pulled out the foam mattress, then removed the plywood panels. By this time the water was already overflowing into the saloon.”

He switched on the electric bilge pump, and also started to pump manually, but realised after 30 minutes he was having little effect.

‘It was about trying to save myself’

At that point he realised it was no longer about trying to save the boat, but was about trying to save himself.

He gathered all his lifesaving equipment together and prepared an inflatable dinghy.

He said: “Approximately 30 mins later, with the foredeck under water, I abandoned ship.”

“I’d put my phone into a Tupperware container for protection, I removed it and took a final photo of the ship. The final stage of the sinking was surprisingly rapid. The stern rose up and in a flurry of bubble and escaping air she went down.

“Unfortunately, I did not cut the line at the life raft end and the excess cord must have somehow got tangled on the boarding ladder or the rudder, because as the hull disappeared, the life raft was dragged down with her. I fell forward into the sea, dropping my phone. My life jacket inflated. By the time I’d come to my senses, thank God, the line had released. I scrambled into the life raft, which was, of course, full of water.

“I used the Tupperware container to bail and once this was done I retrieved the EPIRB (a beacon transmitting his location) which after its dunking, had activated automatically. Despite this, I pressed the manual activation button anyway.”

Rescued by Ukranian cargo ship MSC Sheila

“After approximately two hours in the raft I spotted a ship on the horizon heading my way. When I was certain it was within range I fired a rocket flare. After a short while I lit a hand held flare and then another as the ship got closer. The captain sounded the fog horn to indicate I’d been seen.

“The ship came to a stop about a hundred yards away and I made heavy work of rowing the raft to the ladder that had been lowered down the hull. The climb up the sheer side of the ship was gruelling, but eventually I stood on the deck of MSC Sheila, safe.

“After a couple of cups of tea with Captain Yevgeniy Bogdanovic, I went back down the ladder onto the Hellenic Coast Guard cutter and returned to Rhodes with them.”

He was taken back to Rhodes on the coast guard vessel, and briefly arrested as a formality to answer questions.

Chris booked into a hotel, and said he had a good cry before ringing his family to tell them he was alive, before flying home on November 9.

He is now safely back at home in South Yorkshire. Despite what happened, he said his family is happy for him to go to see again, and he has not been put off.

Although he is yet to finalise any plans, he hopes to help crew a boat across the Atlantic to America next year.

TRAVEL: Trains on Christmas Eve: CrossCountry confirms strike action will affect services over festive period