60 Minutes: July 22

60 Minutes has a special episode this weekend as Allison Langdon meets Ruben McDornan, one of seven crewman on a fishing boat facing disaster at sea.

As capricious and powerful as they knew the ocean could be, the seven courageous crewmen of the fishing dive boat Dianne didn’t fear it. Rather, Ruben McDornan, Ben Leahy, Adam Bidner, Zac Feeney, Adam Hoffman, Chris Sammut and Eli Tonks thrived during their adventures at sea. Instinctively, this band of best mates also understood that whenever they left port to earn their living diving for sea cucumbers, looking after each other was always the priority.

But on October 16 last year the unthinkable happened – the sea off the coast of central Queensland revealed its fury, the Dianne capsized and six of her crew were lost. Only one man survived.

In a special edition of 60 Minutes, Ruben McDornan speaks publicly for the first time about the tragedy. He recounts the Dianne’s final journey and tells Allison Langdon about his miraculous escape from an underwater tomb, as well as the frantic efforts of the rest of the crew to free themselves. In his gripping account, he also describes the eight frightening hours he spent alone at night in the middle of shark-infested waters; what stopped him from giving up; and his freakish, against-the-odds rescue.

Langdon says: “Ruben’s story is bravery beyond belief.” But for Ruben himself, it’s all about paying tribute to his crewmates, his much-loved “brothers” who didn’t make it home.

8:40pm Sunday on Nine.