Couple Found Dead After Attempting To Sail Across Atlantic

The bodies of a couple who embarked on a trans-Atlantic sailing trip have been found on a washed-up life raft nearly six weeks after their last sighting. Briton Sarah Packwood and her Canadian husband Brett Clibbery are believed to have abandoned their yacht and perished before their remains were discovered on Sable Island near Nova Scotia, Canada, on July 12.

The couple was reported missing on June 18, a week after they left Nova Scotia on their 13-meter (42-foot) eco-friendly yacht, Theros. They were en route to the Azores, approximately 3,228 kilometers away, with the journey expected to take 21 days.

In a Facebook post, Mr. Clibbery’s son James confirmed their deaths, expressing the deep sorrow the family felt. “The last few days have been very hard,” he wrote. He added that the couple would be “forever missed,” and lamented, “There isn’t anything that will fill the hole that has been left by their, so far unexplained passing.”

The circumstances surrounding their tragic end remain unclear. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police told the BBC on Sunday that an investigation is ongoing. One theory being considered is that the yacht may have been struck by a passing cargo ship that did not notice the collision, according to the Canadian news website Saltwire. “The sailboat crew were either unable to avoid collision,” or they could have been below deck with Theros on automatic pilot, an anonymous source told Saltwire.

The Canadian coastguard and military aircraft have not spotted any wreckage or sign of the boat, Saltwire reports.

In a video posted to their YouTube channel, Theros Adventures, the couple detailed their journey, dubbed the Green Odyssey, which relied on sails, solar panels, batteries, and an electric engine repurposed from a car. “We’re doing everything we can to show that you can travel without burning fossil fuels,” Mr. Clibbery said in the video, posted on April 12. “It’s probably the biggest adventure of our lives so far,” Ms. Packwood added.

The couple’s journey began with a chance meeting in London in 2015, when Mr. Clibbery, a retired engineer, was preparing to donate a kidney to his sister. They married on their yacht in Canada a year later and reaffirmed their vows in a traditional handfasting ceremony at Stonehenge in 2017, as detailed in Ms. Packwood’s personal blog. Their love story was featured in a 2020 “How We Met” article in The Guardian.

Ms. Packwood, originally from Long Itchington, Warwickshire, had a distinguished career as a humanitarian, including work in Rwanda with the UN after the 1994 genocide.

In what would be their final post on June 11, the couple wrote on Facebook: “Captain Brett and First Mate Sarah set sail on the 2nd leg of The Green Odyssey on board Theros – GibSea 42 foot sailboat. Powered by the wind and sun. Heading east to the Azores.”

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