1 PERSON HOSPITALIZED, 11 PEOPLE SAVED FOLLOWING THREE RESCUES

June 2, 2004

PORTSMOUTH, Va. – Eleven people were rescued and one man was taken to the hospital as the holiday weekend gets a busy start.

“Within 30 minutes we had three cases and 12 people in the water,” said Petty Officer Russell G. Lockey, a Coast Guard search and rescue controller at Group Hampton Roads, Portsmouth. With National Safe Boating Week ending and the Memorial Day holiday weekend beginning, the Coast Guard cannot stress enough the importance of boating safety.

The eventful afternoon began at about 1 p.m. when the Coast Guard received notification of a 16-foot catamaran capsized one mile north of the Coleman Bridge in Gloucester, Va. A rescue boat from Station Milford Haven, Va., a Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel, Abingdon Fire and Rescue, Navy Fire and Rescue, Navy security and York County Fire and Rescue launched to assist. A Navy helicopter and a good Samaritan vessel also diverted to assist.

One sailor drifted to shore with the overturned vessel. An hour following the initial notification, the second sailor was recovered by the York County Fire and Rescue unresponsive. The man was taken to Gloucester Point boat ramp where EMS transported him to Mary Immaculate Hospital. Neither sailor was wearing a life jacket.

Another vessel, the 44-foot Hakuna Matata in the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, notified the Coast Guard they were taking on water. A rescue boat from Coast Guard Station Little Creek, Va., and a Virginia Pilot Association vessel immediately launched. The pilot vessel arrived at the Hakuna Matata and transferred all eight people aboard and transported them to Lynnhaven Inlet. All eight were wearing life jackets.

Within 10 minutes of the second call, a third distress call came in from Portsmouth dispatch. A motorist crossing the Churchland Bridge had noticed a capsized vessel near Portsmouth City Park. Coast Guard Station Portsmouth launched a rescue boat and recovered a man and his 11-year-old son from the water. Their 14-foot sailing vessel had suddenly capsized, tossing them into the water. Both father and son were wearing life jackets.

“A big puff of wind came and we just flipped right over,” said Peter Hackes, 47, of Arlington, Va., who was sailing the 14-foot sailboat. This case is an excellent example of the importance of wearing a life jacket while underway. According to the father “We would never have had time to put on our life jackets.” Had they not been wearing them, their chance of survival would have been significantly decreased.

1 PERSON HOSPITALIZED, 11 PEOPLE SAVED FOLLOWING THREE RESCUES

PORTSMOUTH, Va. – Eleven people were rescued and one man was taken to the hospital as the holiday weekend gets a busy start.

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