Crew Saved After Finnish Boat Capsizes in Round the World Race

The 16-member crew of the Finnish entry Martela was rescued Monday after the 81-foot sloop lost its keel and capsized 150 miles off the coast of South America on the fourth leg of the Whitbread Round the World Race.

Martela, skippered by Markku Wiikeri, has been having trouble with its keel since the first leg of the race in September. The keel was refitted to the German Frers design in Montevideo, Uruguay, but the bolts worked loose again.

The boat was in fourth place, 350 miles out from Punta del Este, Uruguay, when the keel let go shortly after noon. Conditions were moderate--15 knots of wind and three-foot seas--but the sudden loss of ballast caused the boat to roll upside down. After broadcasting an emergency distress signal, some of the crew scrambled onto the bottom of the hull and others went into inflated rafts.

The nearest boats, Merit and Charles Jourdan, altered course to pick up the crew about 4 1/2 hours later. Those two boats will receive credit for the time lost and for extra crew transported to Punta del Este.

Steinlager 2 of New Zealand continued to lead the 23-boat fleet and was expected to reach Punta del Este late Monday. The 84-foot ketch won the first three legs and led another New Zealand entry, Fisher & Paykel, by 70 nautical miles as the 32,932-nautical mile race neared its two-thirds point.