A couple who embarked on a ‘green odyssey’ across the Atlantic Ocean were found dead in a lifeboat after being forced to abandon their wind and solar yacht.
Sarah Packwood, 54, of Warwick, and Brett Clibbery, 70, were reported missing on June 18 after leaving Nova Scotia, Canada, a week earlier in their 42-ft sailboat, Theros, en route to the Azores.
Their two bodies were finally found last week on a 10-foot life raft after it washed up on Sable Island, 180 miles off the coast of Nova Scotia.
It is a mystery how the couple’s planned voyage turned into such a tragedy. It is feared that their reliance on sails and an electric motor powered by solar panels left them without backup when things went wrong.
Before they left, Canadian Clibbery said in a video posted on April 12, “We’re doing everything we can to show that you can travel without burning fossil fuels.”
After they left, Mrs Packwood posted a farewell video message: “Captain Brett and First Officer Sarah set sail for the 2nd leg of The Green Odyssey aboard the Theros – GibSea 42ft sailboat. Powered by the wind and the sun. Heading east to the Azores.”
Mrs Packwood, who was a poet, musician and reiki healer and was described by friends as an accomplished sailor, added: “It’s probably the greatest adventure of our lives so far.”
Police in Halifax, Nova Scotia, have launched an investigation into the deaths and have not yet ruled out the possibility of an accident, power outage, fire or suspicious circumstances.
The couple’s adventurous life began when they met by chance at a bus stop in London in 2015.
They were married a year later on the yacht, after which they had a Celtic wedding ceremony at Stonehenge, known as “handfasting.” They then returned to Canada, where they bought a piece of land on Salt Spring Island, near Vancouver.
Mrs Packwood learned to sail at university in England and became a crew member on the Lord Nelson for the Jubilee Sailing Trust during the first leg of the European Tall Ships Race.
Together with Mr. Clibberry she sailed 5,000 miles along the Pacific coast of Canada, the United States and South America.
Ms. Packwood previously worked as an aid worker in Africa, South America and Southeast Asia.
She blogged about their travels and the couple ran a YouTube channel where they kept friends, family and fans updated on their plans to convert Theros into a fully solar-powered vessel.
Mrs Packwood previously wrote during one of their travels together on the Camino Frances in Spain: “I believe in the mystical and often feel as if guardian angels are watching over us.”
In her online blog about one of their voyages, she wrote: “We spent a year together on the high seas aboard Theros, sailing the first leg of our round-the-world voyage in stages from Salt Spring Island, British Columbia to Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, via Central America, the Panama Canal and crossing the western Caribbean.”
Their voyage in Theros from Halifax, Nova Scotia to the Azores would be the first time they would sail the yacht after it had been completely converted to an environmentally friendly energy source.
Mr Clibbery, with the help of Mrs Packwood, converted the Theros himself to solar power by removing the diesel engine.
He equipped the boat with six solar panels that powered a lithium-ion battery pack and an auxiliary motor.
The solar panels were attached to a steel frame roof, with fiberglass and plexiglass side panels, creating a watertight ‘hard dodger’ cabin.
In a YouTube video, Mr. Clibbery described how he carried out the renovation using hand tools and readily available DIY materials.
Some experts said the addition of the solar panels and battery pack would make the yacht heavier and potentially unstable. There were also concerns that saltwater could cause the lithium battery pack to corrode and catch fire.
In her last post before the couple left on June 11, Mrs. Packwood wrote on Facebook: “We want to cross the ocean, if all goes well, the wind is favorable and the sea goes with us!”
At the time, Theros was 10 nautical miles from shore and sailing at five and a half knots toward the Azores. In the video, Mr Clibbery said they were moving away from a large tanker that had also left Halifax.
When Theros appeared to lose contact with shore, friends began posting fearful messages on the Facebook page.
Catherine Allison wrote: “The Coast Guard are looking for Theros. Fingers crossed they make an AIS when they come within 150 miles or so of the Azores [Automatic Identification system] ping and we can all breathe again.”
But after more than a month of radio silence, their friends’ worst fears were confirmed.
Dozens of people have now posted condolences.
Tim O’Connor, 64, and John Dolman, 63, who were friends with Mr Clibberly and Ms Packwood for many years, described them as “two peas in a pod”.
“They were the kind of couple you see at the dinner table, and instead of staring at their phones, they always had something to say to each other. They were laughing together all the time. They were one of the happiest couples we know,” Mr Dolman said.
The couple said Mr Clibberly’s son, James, was en route from his home in Ontario to the island where a celebration of their lives was being planned.
He posted a tribute saying: “The last few days have been very difficult. My father James Brett Clibbery and his wife Sarah Justine Packwood have sadly passed away. An investigation is still ongoing, as is a DNA test to confirm it, but with all the news it is hard to stay hopeful.
“They were wonderful people, and there is nothing that can fill the void left by their, as yet unexplained, passing. Life will not be the same without your wisdom, and your wife quickly became a beacon of knowledge and kindness. I miss your smiles. I miss your voices. You will be missed forever.”
It is still unclear how the couple got into trouble.
Medical examiners are thoroughly examining the remains of Mrs. Packwood and Mr. Clibbery for signs of injury.
When Theros is eventually recovered, she will also be examined to determine whether the ship was accidentally rammed by a larger vessel or if a fire started on board, forcing them to abandon ship.
A veteran Nova Scotia sailor reportedly close to the investigation said on condition of anonymity: “While they don’t have conclusive evidence, they suspect the sailboat whose crew washed up dead on Sable Island just days after leaving Halifax was hit by a bulk carrier.
“The crew of the sailboat were unable to avoid a collision or they may have been below with Theros on autopilot.”
Hugo Fontaine, spokesman for the Canadian Transportation Safety Board, said: “At this time, we cannot say with complete certainty that the sailing vessel was struck by a ship as we are still gathering information about the overdue sailing vessel Theros.”
There is also speculation that a fire broke out on board – a common hazard on a boat – forcing them to abandon ship.
It appears the couple did not make any distress calls or fire any distress signals before their boat disappeared.
Guillaume Tremblay, spokesperson for the regional branch of the Halifax Royal Canadian Mounted Police, said “investigators are exploring all possible avenues.”
Officer Tremblay said the couple may have gotten into trouble in the dangerous waters off the coast of Nova Scotia.
“The Atlantic Ocean can be very unfriendly, especially with the current weather and the weather cycles coming from the south, such as hurricanes, so there are certainly a lot of consequences and impacts on ocean-going vessels,” he said.