MOBILE, Ala. — The Coast Guard continues searching, Wednesday, for three Coast Guard members who went missing while conducting a training flight in the vicinity of Mobile Bay.
The Coast Guard Captain of the Port Mobile has established a safety zone approximately three-and-a-half miles south of Point Clear and two nautical miles in diameter.
The search area encompasses a majority of Mobile Bay.
The Coast Guard, along with several federal, state and local first responders, has conducted more than 40 search-and-rescue sorties in an effort to locate the three missing Coast Guardsmen.
The 57-foot salvage vessel, Ben R. Johnson, owned by Jordan Industries, Inc., arrived at the crash site at approximately 4 p.m., to conduct initial assessments prior to beginning the salvage operations of the sunken helicopter.
Assets searching include:
- Multiple MH-65C helicopters and crews from Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans, La.;
- One MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and crew from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, Fla.;
- Two 41-foot utility boats and crews and one 25-foot Response Boat-Small and crew from Coast Guard Station Dauphin Island;
- The Coast Guard Cutters Cobia and Stingray, homeported in Mobile;
- One 45-foot Response Boat-Medium and crew from Coast Guard Station Pensacola, Fla;
- One 26-foot Trailerable Aids-to-Navigation Boat and crew from Coast Guard Aids-to-Navigation Team Panama City, Fla.;
- Coast Guard Auxiliary;
- Alabama Marine Resources;
- Daphne Search and Rescue;
- Mobile County Sheriff’s Flotilla;
- North Baldwin Sheriff’s Search and Rescue;
- Bon Secour Fish and Wildlife;
- Fairhope Police Department.
The cause of the incident is under investigation.n.
