CLEVELAND – The U.S. Coast Guard rescued three people from the tugboat Kristin J. near Glencoe, Ill., at about 11:30 a.m., Oct. 2, 2010, after the tug, having run aground on Glencoe Shoal earlier in the day, began taking on water.
Rescue crews aboard an HH-65C Dolphin rescue helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City, Mich., were deployed after the Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan received a distress call via VHF-FM radio channel 16 at about 9 a.m.
The helicopter crew removed all three people from the vessel without incident and brought them safely to shore.
The crew of Kristin J. originally reported grounding the vessel at about 12:30 a.m., but were not in any danger until hours later when the vessel began taking on water.
There have been no reports of pollution from the tug. The vessel is not posing a threat to maritime navigation, and the crew is coordinating commercial salvage to recover it.
The Coast Guard encourages all mariners to invest in a VHF-FM marine-band radio as their primary means of communication on the water.
VHF-FM radio channel 16, the international hailing and distress channel, is monitored by the Coast Guard and state marine patrols around the clock. In addition, unlike cellular phones, distress calls broadcast over VHF-FM Channel 16 will be heard by all mariners in the vicinity. Urgent safety information and weather reports for boaters are also broadcast over marine band radio channels.
