PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Two mariners, in their twenties, were rescued on Monday, March 4, more than 1,700 miles east of Bermuda, a release states.
The young men were rescued by The Coast Guard and a good Samaritan vessel.
“This rescue was quite a distance from land and the successful rescue of two mariners was only possible because of the crew of the Frio Ionian’s participation in the AMVER program,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Starr Franklin, a watchstander with the Fifth District command center, in a release. “To put the distance from shore in perspective, the mariners were roughly the same as if you drove from Portsmouth, Virginia to Odessa, Texas, near the Texas-New Mexico border.”
Watchstanders with the Fifth Coast Guard District command center received a distress alert around 6 p.m. Sunday, March 3, a release states. The district alerted mariners in the area to lookout for the sailors and used search vessels from Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue, or AMVER. The watchstanders also directed the launch of a Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City HC-130 Hercules airplane crew to assist.
The airplane crew arrived on scene at 4:45 a.m. on Monday and communicated with the mariners, who said a lightning strike caused a hole in their vessel. The Frio Ionian crew arrived on scene at 10 a.m. and rescued the men with no injuries.
Continue to check WAVY.com for updates.
