Downwind of the British and effectively out of range, "Indomptable" turned towards the bay of Cadiz. At about two in the morning of 22 October, her crew heard distress calls from the French ship which had struck a reef off Santa Catalina fort. The ship's boat was run out and brought alongside "Bucentaure", whose crew requested an anchor and hawsers to secure their vessel. This became impractical as "Bucentaure" settled deeper onto the rocks and began to sink: instead, "Indomptable"s boats began ferrying sailors off the vessel and back to their own. Rescue efforts continued until mid-afternoon on 23 October, by which time "Bucentaure" was completely submerged.