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| News Release |
Date: Contact: |
| Coast Guard assists boaters in distress off Haiti |
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A smallboat crew from the Coast Guard Cutter Key Biscayne approaches a 65-foot Haitian-flagged vessel in distress Monday about 65 miles north of Haiti. (Coast Guard photo)
A smallboat crew from the Coast Guard Cutter Key Biscayne assists people aboard a 65-foot Haitian-flagged vessel in distress Monday about 65 miles north of Haiti. (Coast Guard photo) MIAMI -- The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Key Biscayne assisted the crew of a Haitian-flagged vessel that was rapidly taking on water Monday about 65 miles north of Haiti. Key Biscayne crewmembers responded to a mayday from the 65-foot steel-hulled Haitian-flagged vessel after it began foundering in 5-to-7 foot seas and the vessel’s dewatering pumps were unable to keep up. The vessel's crew of nine was transporting two cars and home appliances from the Bahamas to Haiti. Just three days earlier, Key Biscayne’s crew performed a successful search-and-rescue mission of a 52-foot U.S.-flagged yacht, Freedom, which was in distress 25 miles north of Cuba. “Although we are patrolling the Windward Pass in support of counter-drug operations and to deter illegal migration from Haiti into the Southeast United States, answering a distress call is the crux of our Guardian Ethos,” said Lt. Brian Smicklas, Key Biscayne’s commanding officer. “Yet again during this patrol, I am very proud of the way our crew admirably performed.” The Key Biscayne is a 110-foot patrol boat homeported in Key West, Fla. |
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