Saturday, May 23, 2015

Coast Guard assists sinking fishing vessel 130 miles east of Nantucket


Coast Guard Cutter Sanibel 

BOSTON — The Coast Guard is responding to a fishing boat taking on water 130 miles east of Nantucket, Massachusetts, Saturday.

At about 12:45 a.m., the fishing vessel Athena’s crew reported to Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England watchstanders in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, that the 51-foot fishing boat Miss Shauna with seven people aboard, was taking on water through a hole in the boat’s engine room. The Coast Guard established communications with the crew of the Miss Shauna, and they reported their pumps were keeping up with the flooding, but the rate of flooding was increasing.

An HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircraft crew and an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod, Massachusetts, launched with pumps for the boat. Coast Guard Cutter Hammerhead and Coast Guard Cutter Sanibel also got underway to assist.

The Ocean Sentry crew arrived on scene and passed a pump to the Miss Shauna. The fishing vessel confirmed conditions were stable upon receiving the pump and they were headed to New Bedford, Massachusetts. The Miss Shauna is expected to arrive in New Bedford at about 4 a.m., Sunday.

Coast Guard crews will remain on scene to assist and escort the Miss Shauna to port.

On scene weather conditions were 14-knot winds and four to five foot seas.