A 50-year-old fisherman missing at sea off the West Australian coast has been rescued after clinging onto his overturned boat all night.
The Ballajura man left shore at 9am (WST) on Tuesday in his 12-foot (3.65m) aluminium boat, along with his dog, but had still not returned more than 24 hours later.
Friends found the missing man's vehicle and boat trailer near a boat ramp in Falcon, prompting the state's Water Police to activate an emergency search and rescue operation.
The police plane, the Surf Life Saving helicopter, police boats and Mandurah Water Rescue Group volunteers were all deployed.
As the search was being undertaken, an emergency beacon signal was picked up by the Rescue Coordination Centre in Canberra.
The upturned vessel was soon spotted about 16km west of Mandurah and the man was rescued.
Tragically, the man's dog was found dead in the nearby water.
A St John's ambulance crew will treat the man for suspected hypothermia.
