Archive image: A rescue swimmer with an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi waves to spectators while performing a search and rescue demonstration during the Wings Over South Texas airshow. May 7, 2023.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Auxiliarist David Lau.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Coast Guard crews rescue four overdue boaters 19 nautical miles offshore Matagorda, Texas. Friday, November 17, 2023.
Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi command center watchstanders received a call at 8:04 p.m. Thursday from the daughter of a boater stating her father had not returned since departing at 8 a.m. He had reportedly planned to visit the Liberty Ship Reef and return before sunset.
Watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast (UMIB) and launched a Coast Guard Station Port O’Connor 45-foot Response Boat–Medium crew, the crew of USCGC Harold Miller, an HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplane crew and MH-65 Dolphin Short-Range Recovery Helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi to commence searching.
Additionally, Coast Guard personnel based in San Angelo, Texas, joined the search Friday morning using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
At 12:14 p.m. Friday, the Coast Guard personnel flying the drone located the disabled vessel with the four boaters aboard. The drone team then notified the RB–M crew from Station Port O’Connor, who towed the vessel to Jetty Park in Matagorda.
No injuries were reported.
«Sharing your float plan with loved ones before fishing offshore is critically important,” said Petty Officer 1st class Cynthia Taylor, operations unit controller, Sector Corpus Christi. «Additionally, equipping yourself with an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) can significantly expedite rescue efforts in times of need.»
Rescue crews involved in the search were:
- Coast Guard Cutter Harold Miller
- Matagorda Sheriff’s Office
- Texas Parks & Wildlife Department
For more information follow U.S. Coast Guard on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
–USCG–
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