Updated at 5:53 p.m., Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Coast Guard rescues man from sinking boat off Moloka'i
Advertiser Staff
An unidentified man was rescued today by a Coast Guard helicopter minutes after reporting that his 12-foot boat was sinking about four miles southwest of Moloka'i.The man's name or where he is from was not immediately available, but he did not appear to have suffered injuries, Coast Guard Lt.(j.g.) Peter Gavin said.
The boater contacted the Coast Guard Sector Honolulu on VHF-FM radio at 2:47 p.m., and two HH-65 rescue helicopters were dispatched from Air Station Barbers Point. The cutter Galveston Island was diverted from a routine patrol to assist.
The helicopters reached the sinking vessel within 13 minutes and a rescue basket was lowered to pluck the man from the boat. He was taken to Barbers Point, from which an ambulance took him to a hospital to be examined.
"This mariner actually saved himself," said Gavin, a search-and-rescue specialist. "He had on his life jacket, first and foremost, then he contacted us on the marine-band radio to let us know where he was. We just came along and gave him a ride." There were no reports of fuel or other pollutants leaking from the sinking boat. Mariners are encouraged to keep a sharp lookout for the vessel or any debris.
