BOSTON – Coast Guard units in New England are pre-staging crews and equipment and warning mariners today in anticipation of Tropical Storm Kyle which is expected to arrive Sunday.
The National Weather Service is calling for wind gusts up to 80 knots and seas around 10-20 feet offshore.
Coast Guard shore units are broadcasting weather warnings via VHF-FM radio and a Falcon jet crew from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod, Mass., is flying offshore and broadcasting the latest weather to mariners at sea.
High seas, heavy rains, and damaging winds that accompany tropical storms may present serious dangers to mariners and coastal communities. Assistance by the Coast Guard and other agencies may be degraded or unavailable immediately before, during, and after the storm.
For mariners who are underway, the Coast Guard urges them to seek shelter from the storm.
The Coast Guard urges boat owners not underway to secure their canoes, kayaks and boats both before and after the storm and if they discover that their boats have broken loose during the storm, report it as soon as possible to the nearest Coast Guard station.
“When we get a report of an empty boat drifting, we don’t know if someone is in distress or if a boat just broke free from the dock,” said Lt. Jonathan Rice, a command duty officer for the Coast Guard First District command center. “To avoid those false alarms, which take assets away from true distress calls, we ask owners to notify us if they lose a boat and keep contact information inside their vessels.”
Mariners are encouraged to closely monitor VHF-FM channel 16 for updated storm information.
