Updated at 3:41 p.m., Saturday, December 15, 2007
Rescued Maui sailor now on his way to Japan
Advertiser Staff
WAILUKU, Hawai'i — A maui man was rescued from his stricken trimaran Thursday night and is now in his way to Japan, the Coast Guard said.About 5 p.m. Thursday, the solo sailor aboard a 30-foot trimaran reported he was taking on water 230 nautical miles east of Maui and the U.S. Coast Guard began coordinating rescue efforts for the 43-year-old Wailuku man.
The Coast Guard was alerted to a 406 MHz distress beacon, which was activated by the man aboard the trimaran. He also called the Coast Guard in Honolulu on a satellite phone.
The trimaran, a three-hulled sailing vessel, suffered damage to the center hull after the starboard (or right-most) hull had broken in heavy seas and winds of 20 knots.
The Coast Guard requested assistance from the merchant ship, CS Victory, which was 60 miles away from the sinking trimaran and transiting across the Pacific to Japan.
The U.S. Navy provided a P-3 search plane from Kaneohe to fly over the sinking trimaran and provide the merchant ship with the coordinates for the distressed vessel.
The man suffered no injuries and is safely aboard the CS Victory bound for Japan, Coast Guard officials said.
"Basically, what saved his life was that he had all the necessary safety gear," said Lt. Cmdr. Matt Salas, Fourteenth Coast Guard District Command Center Supervisor and a Coast Guard search and rescue coordinator.
"He helped us help him and he helped take the 'search' out of search and rescue."
The Coast Guard is committed to keeping mariners safe and preventing loss of life through preparation and proper boating safety, Salas said.
