Bermuda in rough seas last night.

The 38-foot sloop Meriuikku , which left the Island on Thursday heading towards Europe, ran into trouble after its mast was shattered in appalling weather conditions.

The US Coastguard sent out a spotter plane to make contact with the stricken crew last night after the boat's captain activated an emergency beacon.

A merchant vessel close by was also informed of the drama and immediately headed towards the yacht in case the crew had to abandon ship.

As The Royal Gazette went to press last night a spokesman for Harbour Radio confirmed that the crew were now trying to repair the damaged mast in an effort to make it back to Bermuda.

"They have enough fuel for about 150 miles but they're trying to rig up a temporary sail to make it back to Bermuda which is their nearest point of land,'' a Harbour Radio spokesman said.

"The captain is also in contact with the US Coastguard and the merchant ship is expected to arrive there in the next couple of hours, just in case they have to abandon ship. But hopefully they'll be able to steer some sort of course back to Bermuda.'' The spokesman confirmed that the crew was battling against winds of 25 knots and seas as high as 12 feet.

"We are keeping a very close eye on the situation,'' he said.