Three sailors were last night battling rough conditions as Bermuda Maritime Operations co-ordinates a search-and-rescue operation for their stricken yacht.

The centre received a distress call from the French sailing vessel Zion, just under 50 miles east-northeast of the island, as frigid weather, high seas and powerful gusts continued.

The yacht was described as a white sloop, believed to be equipped with a life raft and dinghy.

The US Coast Guard’s Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Norfolk, Virginia, was briefed by Bermuda officials on the call for help at 3.44am yesterday, including the possible need for a search aircraft, given the continued rough weather.

At 1.15pm, a US Coast Guard aircraft from Air Station Cape Cod in Massachusetts arrived on the scene.

It located the yacht and spotted the three crew members on deck “in apparently good condition”, the centre said.

However, attempts to get marine VHF radios to the vessel in two separate parachute drops were unsuccessful.

The C-144 aircraft left the scene at 3.05pm to refuel in Bermuda.

Bermuda officials said the closest merchant ship to the vessel — a Marshall Islands-registered bulk carrier — was 160 miles southeast of Bermuda and diverted to help those on board.

Yesterday afternoon, the ship was still 24 hours away from the distress position.