U.S. Coast Guard rescue personnel in Alameda, Calf. received a telephone call from a family member of two sailors reporting their boat was demasted and in distress. Within minutes of receiving the phone call, rescue personnel also received a 406 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) alert for the same location. Coast Guard authorities immediately queried the Amver system and located the Panamanian flagged bulk carrier Nord Voyager which was only 130 miles away from the sailboat.
The crew of the disabled sailboat maintained two hour communications with rescue personnel. The master of the Sailfish also released his mas and boom from the boat to increase stability. The crew of the sailboat reported the on scene weather was 12 knot winds with eight foot southerly swells and clear skies.
The Sailfish crew members were encouraged to take turns sleeping while the 620-foot Amver ship made best speed to their location. Once in the area the crew of the Nord Voyager were able to safely embark the two survivors without injury. The sailboat was marked and left adrift. The two survivors will remain aboard the Panamanian flagged ship until it reaches its next port in Vitoria, Brazil on July 3, 2015.
The Nord Voyager, managed by IMECS of Japan, enrolled in Amver on March 25, 2012 and has earned one Amver participation award.
Photo credit: marinetraffic.com
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