Coast Guard rescues 2 on fishing vessel near Frying Pan Tower, NC

News Release

Dec 23, 2017 U.S. Coast Guard 5th District Mid-Atlantic Contact: 5th District Public Affairs Office: (757) 398-6272 After Hours: (757) 434-7712

Coast Guard rescues 2 on fishing vessel near Frying Pan Tower, NC

 

OAK ISLAND, N.C. — The Coast Guard rescued two fishermen aboard a vessel disabled and taking on water 20 miles southeast of Bald Head Island Friday.

Watchstanders in the Coast Guard Sector North Carolina Command Center in Wilmington received notification at approximately 3:50 p.m. that the 50-foot fishing vessel Shannondoah was experiencing engine issues. The men contacted watchstanders later to notify them the engine had lost power and the vessel was taking on water. 

A Coast Guard 47-foot Motor Lifeboat (MLB) crew from Station Oak Island was launched to assist. Once on scene, the MLB crew towed the vessel to the South Harbor Village Marina in Oak Island where they moored up.

"The biggest thing that helped the fishermen was that they contacted us first when there was an inkling of an issue, then followed up later when the engine died,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class David Youngs, coxswain for the case. "Their early contact ensured we knew the issues they were having and were all the more prepared before getting on scene.”

The on-scene weather conditions were 14 knot winds and six to eight-foot seas. 

 

-USCG-