A man and woman have been plucked from the ocean during a dramatic rescue off the New South Wales far north coast.
A mayday call was made just after 2:00am when the 14-metre cruiser began taking on water and sank more than three nautical miles (5.5km) off South Ballina.
Jimmy Keough from the region's Rescue Helicopter Service said a man thought to be in his 50s and woman in her 40s were on board.
"They managed to escape the vessel before it went down, with life jackets on fortunately enough," he said.
Mr Keough said they were found clinging to a floatation ring by local Marine Rescue volunteers.
He said the boat's skipper activated the vessel's emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) before jumping overboard.
Rough conditions
The rescue helicopter crew located the pair and stayed at the scene as the rescue was carried out.
Conditions at the time were treacherous, with those on board the Marine Rescue boat forced to cross the notorious Richmond River bar in the dark.
"Seas up to 2.5 metres on the bar with broken waves right across it," Mr Keough said.
"So it is a fantastic effort by that boat crew to get out there and assist those people.
"But the biggest thing for us is that those people are now safe.
"They're out of the water and they did have the correct safety measures in place and the communication devices with them, and they can tell their story."
Mr Keough said paramedics treated the pair for exposure when they arrived at the Ballina Wharf.
Efforts to locate and salvage the sunken vessel are being hampered by the rough conditions.
.jpg?w=600)
