One Briton dead after yacht hits Australian reef

SYDNEY, Australia -- One woman died, another is missing and four other Britons were washed ashore at a remote Australian bombing range almost a day after their yacht struck a reef and capsized on Sunday.

"We have found the body of one female and another female is still missing," a police spokeswoman said.

Six crew members, all British, were aboard the 38-foot (11.6 m) yacht Rising Faster when it hit a reef and was then struck by a large wave off Evans Head, about 580 km (360 miles) north of Sydney, on the New South Wales coast.

The incident occured at about 1:00 a.m. local time (1500 GMT) on Sunday after the yacht set sail from the neighbouring state of Queensland.

The four survivors spent about 16 hours in the water clinging to debris before they were washed ashore.

The police spokeswoman said Royal Australian Air Force personnel located the four on a remote beach at the South Evans Head Bombing Range at 9.30 a.m. (2330 GMT) Sunday.

The survivors included three men aged 26, 30 and 32 and a 22-year-old woman. They were all taken to nearby Ballina Hospital where they were treated for dehydration and minor injuries.

Police, coastguard and emergency services personnel using boats and helicopters are searching for the missing woman. Defense force personnel are also searching beaches in the area.

"The skipper said they lost their keel ... and that forced them into an immediate roll-over under full sail and I guess things happened fairly quickly for them in the darkness," the pilot of a rescue helicopter told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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