Man Rowing Across the Pacific Ocean Rescued From Cyclone Alfred by the Australian Navy

Adventurer Aurimas Mockus got caught in Tropical Cyclone Alfred and had to be rescued, only days out from his final destination.

At the time of his rescue, 44-year-old Mockus was attempting to row across the Pacific Ocean alone to become one of the few to ever successfully achieve it.

Local media report that on Friday night Mockus sounded his distress signal after being caught in enormous waves and winds up to 100 km/h. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) came to the rescue, and the Royal Australian Navy ship, HMAS Choules, was sent into the Coral Sea to assist. The ship crossed rough sea conditions to rescue Mockus, who received medical treatment on board the navy ship.

Lithuania’s Ambassador to Australia, Darium Degutis told ABC News he was extremely thankful to everyone involved in saving Mockus.

‘It is thanks to their efforts that he is safe today’, he said.

‘The moment when it was clear that restoring the boat to its stable position would definitely not be possible’, Aurimas posted

Crossing the Pacific Ocean

Few people have successfully crossed the Pacific Ocean on their own. Amongst those who have succeeded are English chaps Peter Bird who achieved the crossing in 1983, and John Beeden, who had success in 2015. In 2023 Australian Michelle Lee successfully crossed the ocean alone.

Aurimas Mockus began his 12000km journey from San Diego, southern California back in October 2024 and his final destination was supposed to be Brisbane. He rowed for 12 hours a day, updating followers on his journey via his Instagram account @patriot_lt.

Tropical Cyclone Alfred is forecast to make landfall in Queensland and NSW on Saturday.

Images thanks to Aurimas Mockus