Two men and a 13-year-old boy were winched aboard the Westpace Rescue Helicopter after their boat began taking on water about 1.8kilometres south of Evans Head yesterday.
The helicopter was able to fly directly to the stricken vessel after the skipper activated an emergency beacon which gave the helicopter the GPS coordinates.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority detected the beacon and the helicopter crew located the trio holding onto the partially submerged boat.
The helicopter winched a water rescue crewmember into the ocean to recovery the three people.
All were recovered and transported to Evans Head, while a crew from Marine Rescue Evans Head towed the boat back to shore.
The helicopter paramedic reported that all three sustained no injuries apart from water exposure.
The emergency locator beacon was activated by the skipper of the vessel after he returned back into the partially submerged vessel to recover the registered beacon and activate the device which allowed the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter to fly directly to the scene using GPS coordinates.
Rescue staff said the beacon and the fact the trio were wearing lifejackets ensured that everyone survived the incident.
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