NEW YORK – Multiple Coast Guard assets and local agencies assisted in the rescue of two mariners near Wading River, N.Y., Sunday.
At approximately 10:55 p.m., Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound command center was notified of an overdue 12-foot inflatable boat with two adults onboard. The reporting source was the operator’s brother, who stated that they were taking the boat out around 4 p.m. yesterday and did not usually go out far or for very long. The mariners did not take their cell phones or have a radio aboard the vessel.
A search plan was formulated based on the last known position of .5 nautical miles north of the beachfront residence they had left from.
Searches were conducted by Riverhead and Southold Police Departments, Suffolk Marine and Air, Coast Guard Station Eatons Neck, Coast Guard Station New London, and Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod.
Initial searches yielded negative results, but at 3:09 a.m., as Air Station Cape Cod began their second search, they located the vessel matching the description with two persons on board waving their hands.
Station Eatons Neck arrived on scene and took the mariners and their small vessel on board, contacted their family members, and transited to a town dock in Mount Sinai.
They had no health or medical concerns and the pair confirmed they had run out of fuel.
“I would tell the general public to have a thought-out float plan, stick to it, let someone know what the plan is, and be prepared for what could happen,” said Boatswains Mate 2nd Class Thomas Watson, Coast Guard Station Eatons Neck. “The boating public should have a working radio or at a minimum a charged cell phone on board. In an emergency, you could use it to signal someone for help, find your location, and…call someone for assistance. Safety equipment…is very effective when used properly and is affordable. This would include lifejackets, sound-producing devices, fire extinguishers and a signaling device.”
