COAST GUARD RESCUES 12 PEOPLE FROM DOWNED HELICOPTER HOUSTON – Twelve people were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter crews from Air Station Houston this evening, after their helicopter went down 23 miles south of Sabine, Texas. An F-76 helicopter, owned by Houston Helicopters, had taken off from the offshore platform High Island 346 at 3:45 p.m. en route to Sabine. At 4:04 p.m. the FAA received several reports of a helicopter in distress. The watchstander at Coast Guard Group Galveston received a call at 7:19 p.m. from Houston Offshore. The report stated that a F-76 helicopter was missing. Onboard were a pilot, a co-pilot and 10 passengers. An HU-25 Falcon jet from Air Station Corpus Christi, two HH-65B Dolphin helicopters from Air Station Houston and two 87-foot patrol boats, the Manowar and Skipjack, from Galveston were immediately dispatched to search for the missing helicopter. At 9:30 p.m. the crew of an HH-65B Dolphin helicopter located 12 people in the water 23 miles south of Sabine. The 12 were safely rescued and transported to the Southeast Texas Medical Center in Sabine. Two are in critical condition. All had chemical burns from the helicopter fuel. The off-shore supply boat Warrior was in the area and provided rescue assistance. COAST GUARD RESCUES 12 PEOPLE FROM DOWNED HELICOPTER HOUSTON – Twelve people were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter crews from Air Station Houston this evening, after their helicopter went down 23 miles south of Sabine, Texas. An F-76 helicopter, owned by Houston Helicopters, had taken off from the offshore platform High Island 346 at 3:45 p.m. en route to Sabine. At 4:04 p.m. the FAA received several reports of a helicopter in distress. The watchstander at Coast Guard Group Galveston received a call at 7:19 p.m. from Houston Offshore. The report stated that a F-76 helicopter was missing. Onboard were a pilot, a co-pilot and 10 passengers. An HU-25 Falcon jet from Air Station Corpus Christi, two HH-65B Dolphin helicopters from Air Station Houston and two 87-foot patrol boats, the Manowar and Skipjack, from Galveston were immediately dispatched to search for the missing helicopter. At 9:30 p.m. the crew of an HH-65B Dolphin helicopter located 12 people in the water 23 miles south of Sabine. The 12 were safely rescued and transported to the Southeast Texas Medical Center in Sabine. Two are in critical condition. All had chemical burns from the helicopter fuel. The off-shore supply boat Warrior was in the area and provided rescue assistance.
