USCG MH-60 helicopter file photo
BOSTON – A Coast Guard Station Boothbay Harbor, Maine 47-foot motor life boat and a Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter responded to a 55-foot recreational vessel taking on water about one mile from the mouth of the Kennebec River on Sunday.
The two-person crew of the vessel Phoenix issued a distress call at 11:43 a.m. reporting their boat was flooding and that they needed assistance. Seas were calm and winds 10- to 15-knots.
Two crewmen from the motor life boat, which arrived on scene shortly after noon, boarded the Phoenix with a pump and successfully dewatered the vessel. The helicopter, which was diverted from a routine patrol in the area, also lowered a second pump at about 12:30 p.m.
There are no reports of any injuries, and the cause of the flooding is unknown.
The motor life boat escorted the Phoenix to the Boothbay Harbor shipyard.
“The Coast Guard crewmen aboard Phoenix were able to get the flooding under control,” said Coast Guard auxiliarist Dave Power from Station Boothbay Harbor. “The motor life boat crew made sure they got back to port safely, will work with them to stabilize the vessel, and investigate why the boat was taking on water.”
