Two amateur fishermen survived more than seven hours in the water after their six-metre boat was capsized by a freak wave at Boatswain Point, near Robe at 10.30am on Tuesday.


Just before 6pm, a member of the public on Long Beach spotted reflections from the local men’s lifejackets about 200 metres from shore and brought them ashore using his surfboard.


The men were airlifted from the beach via a helicopter to awaiting ambulances to be taken to the Mount Gambier Hospital for medical treatment after their ordeal.


They have since been discharged.


There are unconfirmed reports the two men are brothers and had been accompanied by a small, three-legged dog.


The canine is understood to have survived the ordeal by swimming to shore.


The ‘street talk’ suggests the two men had been pulling cray pots when the wave struck and their boat sank quickly.


Furthermore, it is believed they tried unsuccessfully to activate the EPIRB distress signal device.


The alarm had been raised just before 2.30pm on Tuesday when the two men did not return from checking craypots that morning.


A search was launched utilising SES volunteers, the Adelaide-based SAPOL’s Water Operations Unit and the Polair helicopter.


A Challenger Bombardier jet aircraft from the Australian Marine Safety Authority was deployed from its base in Melbourne.


Local fishers in the area also assisted.


Police and Robe Mayor Lisa Ruffell have publicly thanked all the local volunteers, emergency services personnel, fishers and members of the public who assisted in this incident.