CAPE MAY, N.J. – The Coast Guard rescued three fishermen 75 miles off the coast of Cape May at 8:30 this morning.
The Coast Guard 5th District command center watchstanders in Portsmouth, Va., received a 406 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon alert from the 71-foot fishing vessel Lady Mary from Cape May at 7:30 a.m.
An HH-65C Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Atlantic City launched and located the source of the signal along with an unmanned life raft. Three crew members were found and recovered in the immediate area.
One fisherman was recovered alive, one unresponsive with vital signs, and one unresponsive with out vital signs. The survivor indicated that the vessel sank at approximately 5:00 a.m. with seven people on board. All seven reportedly donned survival suits before the vessel sank.
Crews from an MH-60J Jayhawk helicopter and HC-130J Hercules aircraft from Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., and Coast Guard Cutters Dependable and Finback from Cape May have been deployed to assist in the search for the four still missing.
