PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Coast Guard crews across the 5th District were busy keeping up with people in distress from Independence Day to Sunday, responding to people in the water from capsized boats to washed away paddle boards.
On the 4th of July, members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary rescued six people after their 14-foot boat capsized near Philadelphia International Airport.
Early Friday morning, six more people, including two children, were towed to safety in Philadelphia after their boat became disabled and Coast Guard crews responded.
Friday afternoon:
- Good Samaritans responded to a capsized 23-foot Carolina Skiff near Bogue Inlet, North Carolina, pulling three people from the water.
- Around the same time, Coast Guard Station Emerald Isle responded to a boat taking on water, ensuring they were safe until TowBoat US arrived to tow them in.
- A crude oil tanker, the Stavanger TS, responded to a satellite distress beacon from the 50-foot sailing vessel Quado, picking up the 72-year-old sailor.
Friday evening:
- Coast Guard Station Hobucken towed a disabled 18-foot boat, with two adults and two children, to New Bern, North Carolina.
- Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City, New Jersey, aircrews medevaced a man from the fishing vessel Linda, after he experienced heat stroke symptoms 70 miles offshore.
- Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet recovered a stranded 38 year old on Keg Island, North Carolina, after his paddle board was swept away with high tide.
Saturday, the Maryland Natural Resources Police recovered four adults and two children from a pontoon boat that was taking on water near the beach at Hazard Bay.
Sunday, the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Nathan Bruckenthal towed a disabled sailboat from 50 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to Cape Henry, Virginia.
The Coast Guard recommends that people follow a few basic safety tips to enjoy being on the water. Wear a lifejacket, make sure your vessel is in good working order before you take it out and let someone know where you are going. Boating and alcohol don’t mix: don’t drink while out on the boat.