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Hopes Rise As Yacht Search Resumes

The families of the four missing British sailors have been on an "emotional rollercoaster" but hopes are "much higher" after the US Coast Guard confirmed it would resume its search, one of the sailor's wives has said. Cressida Goslin, wife of Paul Goslin, described the resumption of the search in the Atlantic Ocean as wonderful as she prepared to meet foreign minister Hugh Robertson before going on to the US Embassy to meet the homeland attache. Ms Goslin said the families were ready to request a meeting with Prime Minister David Cameron to ask him to apply pressure on US president Barack Obama after the Coast Guard called off their search but now do not need to. She said: "It's been a complete emotional rollercoaster, we've had discussions with the Foreign Office in the night even though the US wouldn't budge and then we thought they would, and then they wouldn't. "We're just really pleased." "Hopes are still high, they've got much higher in the last hour." Ms Goslin went on: "It's wonderful, it's so nice. Three or four hours ago we were having interviews saying we would really like them to resume the search and asking to meet David Cameron, and for him to talk to Barack Obama. "It's worked. And all the media attention has really helped and we're so grateful to everyone." Asked what the families would now say at their meeting with Mr Robertson, she said: "When we set up the meeting we were going in to plead our case, and I think there's going to be representatives of other organisations in there and just to say why we thought they should continue with the search. "In the last hour that's all changed so now we're going in to say thank you and to ask them what is involved in the search, what resources they are allocating and how long that might go one. "This is the beginning of the situation." But Ms Goslin admitted two days had been lost in the search. She said: "We have, you can't argue with that, but for some of the time the weather was not good and it would have been difficult for air support to have the visibility to do anything anyway so if we've only got a limited amount of searching we need it when it's good visibility." She added that her husband is medically trained as a dentist so would be "an asset". Meanwhile, yachtsman James Male's father Graham Male said of the meeting: "As far as we've been told the search is back on. We've been travelling and things have been happening very fast so we don't know actually what we're being offered yet. "We've got a collection of ideas of what we're going to say, we're going to see what they come up with." Relatives of the four men - experienced captain Andrew Bridge, 22, and crew members James Male, 23, Steve Warren, 52, and Paul Goslin, 56 - have been pleading with the US Coast Guard to resume the search. The crew of the 40ft (12m) Cheeki Rafiki ran into difficulties about 620 miles (998km) east of Cape Cod in Massachusetts last Thursday while returning to the UK from a regatta in Antigua. Contact with the yacht was lost in the early hours of Friday when they diverted to the Azores. The Coast Guard, Canadian aircraft and three merchant vessels searched for them throughout Friday and Saturday but called off efforts on Sunday at 5am local time amid treacherous weather. Prime Minister David Cameron said: "My thanks to the US Coast Guard, which has resumed its search for our missing yachtsmen." Mr Bridge's grandmother Valerie said: "We are delighted. It might not come to anything but people want them to do it and they are trying. It seemed too quick, just two days and we were saying 'if only they could do it (search) for a bit longer'. You never know what could happen." By 3.30pm today more than 197,200 had signed an online petition supporting the campaign to resume the search. Nicola Evans, Mr Bridge's friend who started the petition, said the missing men have now been given a "fighting chance." Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, the local MP for one of the missing men, had appealed to the US Coast Guard (USCG) not to give up and entrepreneur and adventurer Sir Richard Branson had called on vessels near the area to keep a lookout. Some 4,000 square miles (10,360 sq km) were scanned for the vessel's two personal location GPS beacons until no more transmissions were received from the small devices, which have a short battery life. On Saturday, a cargo vessel which was helping with the search spotted and photographed an overturned hull which matched the description of the Cheeki Rafiki but reported no signs of people on board or a life raft. Dame Ellen MacArthur, who twice broke the world record for fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe, said there was "every chance" that the sailors were still alive either inside the hull or in the life raft. Mike Golding, one of the few yachtsmen to have sailed around the world non-stop in both directions, said: "From the images, the yacht has lost the keel, initially they were sinking, taking on water. One imagines they put out the Mayday, prepared themselves for sinking, then the keel fell off, maybe the boat rolled over fast and the question is what happened at that point? Were they able to launch the life raft at that point?" Four-time Olympic sailing champion Sir Ben Ainslie told BBC News: "If there is a chance they are still out there, then we need to keep looking for them, so it is fantastic news that the US Coast Guard have agreed to get back out there. They should be commended for that." Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first man to sail non-stop round the world, said: "The US Coast Guard and US Navy are the best at this, they have the most experience and they have the assets." Efforts should be focused towards " just one more sweep downwind of where the hull was discovered", he suggested " so that people can feel that everything that could be done has been done."

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