Crew that abandoned ship 1,800 miles from Hawaii returns to disabled vessel
COURTESY U.S. COAST GUARD
An HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Air Station Barbers Point dropped a dewatering pump and supplies to 42 people who abandoned ship after their fishing vessel caught fire 1,800 miles south of Hawaii, Wednesday.
The 42 people who abandoned ship after a fire on board their 258-foot fishing vessel returned to their ship today with help from the Coast Guard and an oil tanker, which responded to the distress call 1,800 miles south of Hawaii.
The fire broke out Wednesday and the crew abandoned ship at 10 a.m., climbing into two life rafts, three work boats and a skiff.
When smoke from the fire lessened, the captain and eight crewmembers boarded the U.S.-flagged ship, extinguished the fire and were able to restart the generator and radio equipment.
By 5:10 p.m., a Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules plane from Air Station Barbers Point arrived on scene and air dropped flash lights, flares and a dewatering pump.
The Fong Seong 888, a Tuvalu-flagged oil tanker, took the remaining fishermen on board when it arrived at about 5:30 p.m.
The Coast Guard said that with the help of the dewatering pump, the fishing boat American Eagle is now stable. The rest of the crew returned to the ship.
However, the Fong Seong 888 remains on scene to provide support.
A sister ship, the American Victory, is headed to the American Eagle and should arrive in three days to relieve the Fong Seng 888, the Coast Guard said.
One response to “Crew that abandoned ship 1,800 miles from Hawaii returns to disabled vessel”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Crew got to return back to the disabled vessel to pick up the smartphone charger. New generation. New lifestyle.