SEA RESCUE: U. S. Coast Guard & Navy rush to the rescue of disabled sailboat 110 miles off of Virginia coast

The Coast Guard Cutter Reliance crew works to rig the sailboat, C’est La Vie, for towing 110 miles east southeast of Virginia Beach, Va., Feb 8. 2019. U.S. Coast Guard photo.

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Coast Guard Cutter Reliance is bringing two crewmembers and their disabled sailboat back to shore Friday, Feb. 8, 2019, after a Navy ship responded to their distress call offshore.

A Navy destroyer crew heard the pan-pan distress call on the VHF marine-band radio Thursday night. They came to the sailors’ aid and relayed the message to Coast Guard. After the ship’s crew determined there was no immediate distress on the sailboat, they waited nearby until the Reliance arrived early Friday morning.

The two men reported that they were traveling from Sheepshead Bay, New York, to St. Croix on their 32-foot Kerie Elite sailboat, the C’est La Vie, when the tiller for their rudder snapped.

Reliance’s crew transferred the two crewmembers aboard and put the sailboat in tow. It may take 48 hours for them to get close to Cape Henry, where a commercial maritime towing company is expected to bring the sailboat back to shore.

“It was lucky that the Navy heard the heard the vessel’s pan-pan,” said Lieutenant Amanda Faulkner, a watchstander in the 5th District command center. “Having the right on-water communications equipment is critical to having a safe trip. These sailors had an Emergency Position-indicating Radio Beacon, or EPIRB, on board, which they would have needed to use if no one had been in VHF range.”

Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Andrew Kendrick
  • MECHANICS WANTED
  • MURDER USA: True Crime, Real Killers, available in Kindle, paperback & Audible
  • buzzsmarina.com
  • LINDAS NEW LOCATION OPENS SUNDAY FEB 4th
  • SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS TIPS tctdinvestigations@yahoo.com
  • IMMEDIATE OPENING
  • Everything is coming up roses in Loveville
  • THE CHESAPEAKE TALES & SCALES - Short Story collection by Lenny Rudow, Beth McCoy, Capt. Larry Jarboe, John Peterson, Mel Brokenshire, Mark Robbins, Stephen Gore Uhler, Patty Muchow, Ed Laney & Ken Rossignol in Kindle, paperback and Audible
  • THE CHESAPEAKE: Legends, Yarns & Barnacles - a collection of 50 short stories by Steve Uhler, Fred McCoy, Larry Jarboe, Jack Rue and more in Kindle, paperback & Audible
  • THE CHESAPEAKE: Oysterbuyboats, Ships & Steamed Crabs: Collection of short stories by Jack Rue, Vi Englund, Patty Muchow, Larry Jarboe, Ken Rossignol, Fred & Beth McCoy in Kindle, paperback and Audible
  • THE CHESAPEAKE: A Man Born to Hang Can Never Drown - 50 short stories by Alan Brylawski, Patty Muchow, Steve Uhler, Larry Jarboe, Lou Clements, Fred McCoy, Ken Rossignol in Kindle, paperback & Audible
  • THE CHESAPEAKE: Country Cornpone Cornucopia - Collection of Short Stories by Lenny Rudow, Patty Muchow, Ed Laney, Lou Clements, Fred McCoy, Jack Rue, Capt. Larry Jarboe, Vi Englund, Steve Uhler, Ken Rossignol - In Kindle, paperback & Audible
  • THE CHESAPEAKE: Tidewater Sagas: Short Story collection by Lenny Rudow, Beth McCoy, Capt. Larry Jarboe, John Peterson, Mel Brokenshire, Mark Robbins, Stephen Gore Uhler, Patty Muchow, Ed Laney & Ken Rossignol in Kindle, paperback and Audible

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Exit mobile version