Coast Guard aircrews conduct overflights following major storms to assess damages and identify hazards.
U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Sydney Phoenix.
NEW ORLEANS — The Coast Guard rescue five sailors from a disabled sailing vessel Friday 195 nautical miles southeast of Mobile, Alabama.
Coast Guard District Eight watchstanders received a distress call at 1 p.m. from the 36-foot recreational sailing vessel Madam X with a broken mast and five people aboard. Watchstanders coordinated the launch of a Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew to assist the sailors in distress offshore Mobile.
The aircrew arrived on scene, made contact with the vessel and relayed the situation back to watchstanders. Watchstanders then diverted the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Edgar Culbertson to tow them close to Destin, Florida. The crew of the USCGC Edgar Culbertson towed the vessel throughout Friday and Saturday before BoatUS took over the tow within 20 miles of shore.
There were no reported medical concerns.
«It was the mariner’s properly registered EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) alert and SPOT GPS device that let us know something was wrong and helped to locate this vessel quickly,» said Scott Talbot, a search and rescue mission coordinator at District Eight. «We urge the public to always carry a properly registered EPIRB, GPS, or other locating devices on board their vessels in case of emergencies like this.»
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