An attempt by British-Australian woman Penny Palfrey to swim unassisted from Cuba to Florida ended in failure early Sunday after she had to be pulled out of the water unable to cope with a strong ocean current.

“Penny Palfrey had to be pulled out of the water, after swimming for more then 40 hours,” the team said in a tweet.

It said Palfrey had to abort her bid to reach the Florida Keys at about midnight (0400 GMT Sunday) due to a strong southeast current “that made it impossible for her to continue her swim.”

“Penny is presently on her escort boat being taken care of by her crew,” the team said.

The mother of three and grandmother of two had been seeking to become the first to complete the historic feat without a protective cage.