Coast Guard suspends search for 6 missing people off Port St. Lucie, Fla.

MIAMI - Coast Guard Sector Miami suspended its search efforts for six missing people off Port St. Lucie Inlet in Port St. Lucie, Fla., Wednesday at noon.

Crews aboard 33-foot Special Purpose-Law Enforcement Crafts from Station Fort Pierce, Fla. and Lake Worth Inlet, Fla., a 47-foot Motor Lifeboat from Coast Station Fort Pierce and a HH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Miami searched for 11 hours and covered more than 292 square miles since receiving the distress call. Also assisting with the search were SeaTow, and Martin County Sheriff’s Office crews assisted with a helicopter search and shoreside patrols.

Although this case has not been officially ruled a hoax, it is important for people to know the risks and cost involved when the Coast Guard and other emergency services respond to false reports. Every moment spent responding to false reports takes time that could be vital in the case of a real emergency. Every time a Coast Guard or other emergency service crew responds to a false distress call they are putting themselves in danger and the resources including fuel, manpower and other equipment costs also end up costing taxpayers.

It is a federal felony for anyone to knowingly and willfully communicate a false distress message to the Coast Guard or cause the Coast Guard to attempt to save lives and property when no help is needed. Penalties include up to six years in prison, a $250,000 fine, a $5,000 civil penalty, and possible reimbursement to the Coast Guard for costs of the search.

Coast Guard searching for 6 off Port St. Lucie Inlet

MIAMI - Coast Guard units are continuing their search Wednesday for six people who lost contact with search and rescue coordinators after making thier distress call.

Search and rescue coordinators at Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce, Fla., received a distress call from the vessel about 6 p.m. Tuesday stating it was sinking six miles east of Port St. Lucie Inlet in Port St. Lucie, Fla. The caller stated that they had lifejackets on the vessel. No other information about the vessel or the people aboard was transmitted before SAR coordinators lost contact with the vessel.

Sea conditions in the area at the time of the search were 8-to-10 foot seas and approximately 20 knot winds.

Two vessels from Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce, Fla., a HU-25 Falcon jet crew from Coast Guard Air Station Miami and a Port St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office helicopter are searching for the six missing people.

If anyone has information that may help locate the vessel and its occupants, contact Coast Guard Sector Miami at 305-535-4472.

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Missing Diver off Vero Beach, Florida

MIAMI — The Coast Guard has suspended its search Saturday for a missing diver off Vero Beach, Fla.

Ronald Stefens, 63, of Jensen Beach, Fla., was reported missing to the Coast Guard around 11 a.m. Thursday by fellow divers. At the time of his disappearance, he was about 12 miles east of Vero Beach. According to the report, Stefens had been missing for nearly an hour by the time the Coast Guard was notified.

Crewmembers from numerous units and agencies searched a combined area of nearly 2,500 square miles for Stefens before the search was suspended.

Assisting in the search was:

• The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Thetis, a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Key West, Fla.
• A 47-foot Utility boat crew from Station Fort Pierce, Fla.
• A 33-foot Special Purpose Law Enforcement boat crew from Station Fort Pierce
• Two HH-65 Dolphin helicopter crews from Air Station Miami
• An HU-25 Falcon jet crew from Air Station Miami
• A C-130 Hercules fixed-wing aircraft crew from Air Station Clearwater, Fla.
• An HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Clearwater
• A Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft crew from Vero Beach
• A P-3 Orion aircrew from Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Fla.

“Lobster mini-season brings numerous participants, and unfortunately, incidents occur resulting in the unnecessary loss of life,” said Rear Adm. Steve Branham, Seventh Coast Guard District commander. “The Coast Guard strives for all mariners, including recreational divers and snorkelers, to be safe and aware of their environment.”

Coast Guard Assisting NOAA in Releasing 103 Sea Turtles

MIAMI - Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce, Fla., is scheduled to assist the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration by transporting 103 Loggerhead sea turtles back to sea about 16 miles east of Fort Pierce, Monday.

NOAA scientists chose to release the turtles farther out to sea in the Gulf Stream so they have a better chance of survival. Larger, older turtles will be released by NOAA from shore near Sebastian Inlet, Fla.

NOAA fisheries scientists studied the turtles during routine annual research June 16-27, on the effectiveness of turtle excluder devices (TEDs). A TED is a special component installed in a shrimp trawl that enables sea turtles to escape from shrimpers’ nets while minimizing the loss of shrimp. TEDs were made a mandatory item on offshore shrimping boats in 1989.

“Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce has an exceptional working relationship with NOAA and we’re happy to be able to assist them in any way possible, especially when it comes to protecting an endangered species,” said Chief Warrant Officer Todd Kagarise, the commanding officer of Station Fort Pierce.