Two fishermen have been rescued from their sinking prawn trawler Liberty II about 28km east of Mooloolaba this afternoon thanks to a distress beacon and a fast response by rescue authorities.

At about 3.15pm AEDT the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) detected a distress beacon registered to the prawn trawler.

Shortly afterwards the fishermen contact AMSA via phone and relayed their situation – the vessel was taking on water.

AMSA tasked Queensland Water Police from Mooloolaba and the RACQ Lifeflight helicopter from the Sunshine Coast.

Within an hour Water Police arrived on scene followed shortly by the rescue helicopter and recovered both fishermen.

AMSA would like to thank both rescue crews for their swift response.

This is another example of how distress beacons and a form of two-way communication, in this case a mobile phone, can provide rescue authorities with the information they need to perform a fast and effective rescue.

/Public Release.