Watchstanders at the Coast Guard's 5th District diverted an HC-130 Hercules rescue aircraft crew to the site of the EPIRB distress signal. After the aircrew spotted the boaters, the 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew took the boaters in tow and returned them to Hatteras Inlet.
Coast Guard photo courtesy of Coast Guard Station Hatteras Inlet.
PORTSMOUTH, VA. – The Coast Guard assisted five people after their 21-foot boat lost electrical power 22-miles east of Hatteras Inlet North Carolina, Saturday.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard’s 5th District in Portsmouth, Virginia, received an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon alert of a vessel possibly in distress 22-miles off the coast of Hatteras Inlet.
Coast Guard watchstanders confirmed the owner of the vessel departed on a fishing trip earlier in the day when they reached a relative who was listed as a contact in the EPIRB’s registration
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard’s 5th District in Portsmouth, Virginia, received an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon alert of a vessel possibly in distress 22-miles off the coast of Hatteras Inlet.
Coast Guard watchstanders confirmed the owner of the vessel departed on a fishing trip earlier in the day when they reached a relative who was listed as a contact in the EPIRB’s registration
The crew of an HC-130 Hercules search and rescue aircraft was diverted to the EPIRB’s location while the crew of a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat was dispatched from Coast Guard Station Hatteras Inlet.
Once on-scene, the HC-130 Hercules aircrew spotted the boaters in distress and were notified by a nearby Good Samaritan that boaters had lost power and were unable to communicate.
The crew of the HC-130 Hercules dropped a radio to the boaters and then circled overhead until the rescue boat crew from Station Hatteras Inlet took them in tow and safely returned them to Hatteras Inlet.
“EPIRB’s are a powerful safety tool, especially when used in conjunction with lifejackets and a communication device,” said Lt. j.g. Catherine Taylor Pravia, command duty officer at the Coast Guard’s 5th District command center. “This case illustrates how EPIRB's can expedite a case so rescuers can reach those in need faster and more accurately.”
Once on-scene, the HC-130 Hercules aircrew spotted the boaters in distress and were notified by a nearby Good Samaritan that boaters had lost power and were unable to communicate.
The crew of the HC-130 Hercules dropped a radio to the boaters and then circled overhead until the rescue boat crew from Station Hatteras Inlet took them in tow and safely returned them to Hatteras Inlet.
“EPIRB’s are a powerful safety tool, especially when used in conjunction with lifejackets and a communication device,” said Lt. j.g. Catherine Taylor Pravia, command duty officer at the Coast Guard’s 5th District command center. “This case illustrates how EPIRB's can expedite a case so rescuers can reach those in need faster and more accurately.”
The crew of the HC-130 dropped a radio to the boaters and then circled overhead while a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat crew from Coast Guard Station Hatteras Inlet took the boat in tow and returned them to Hatteras Inlet.
Coast Guard photo courtesy of Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City.
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