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COAST GUARD AUXILIARY CREWS KEPT BUSY DURING HOLIDAY WEEKEND: NEARLY 50 PEOPLE HELPED IN THE NATION\'S CAPITAL
During the 2005 Memorial Day weekend, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary boat crews in the nation\'s capital helped rescue 37 people from the water after their boats capsized. Ten other people were assisted when they became stranded on boats with mechanical problems.
Contact: Aux. Wayne Spivak
Division Chief - External Communications
Public Affairs Department
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary
http://www.auxpa.org
516-353-9155
Media@auxpa.org
COAST GUARD AUXILIARY CREWS KEPT BUSY DURING HOLIDAY WEEKEND: NEARLY 50 PEOPLE HELPED IN THE NATION'S CAPITAL
/Boating PR News/ - WASHINGTON, DC, June 12, 2005 - During the 2005 Memorial Day weekend, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary boat crews in the nation's capital helped rescue 37 people from the water after their boats capsized. Ten other people were assisted when they became stranded on boats with mechanical problems.
Most of the people thrown into the water had lifejackets on, which helped their chances for survival, as did the prompt response of the search and rescue forces.
Auxiliary vessels responded to a capsized sailboat, with people tossed overboard into the one-to-two foot seas. Coast Guard active-duty crews and a Washington, D.C. police boat, fireboat and fire-rescue units ashore also assisted the three people in righting and bailing out their boat.
After the police and fire boats departed, two additional sailboats capsized in the vicinity, right next to each other. Coast Guard and an Auxiliary crews responded, assisting the two boats and the four people in the water. The Auxiliary boat was soon joined on-scene by the D.C. fireboat, which brought one person to an ambulance ashore for medical treatment.
After leaving that scene and heading south, the Auxiliary vessels encountered two additional sailboats as they capsized, throwing three more people into the water, all of whom were assisted by the Auxiliary boat crew. One boat's mast became lodged in the muddy sea bottom, creating a hazard to navigation and made righting the boat more difficult.
With the high winds continuing, the same Auxiliary boat crew witnessed and then assisted another three people thrown into the river when the two boats they were on also capsized, off of Alexandria, VA, opposite the Naval Research Laboratory. Two of the three people were transported by a D.C. fireboat to an ambulance ashore for treatment of exposure to the cold water and high winds.
At about the same time, 22 people commemorating a 2000-year old Chinese maritime search and rescue mission found themselves needing help from modern-day search and rescue crews. Within a few minutes after the capsizing of a 45-foot long "dragon boat" two Auxiliary boat crews on regatta patrol helped D.C. police and fire boat crews rescue the 22 from the Potomac River.
The rescued were among boaters participating in a two-day series of races designed to re-enact the failed search and rescue attempt by local fishermen of a Chinese poet and politician in 278 BC on China's Milo River. Dragon boats feature brightly colored hulls, designed to resemble scales in hues of blue, red, green, and yellow. They sport dragon heads and tails of blue, red and gold.
The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary is composed of uniformed, non-military volunteer's who assist the Coast Guard in all of its varied missions, except for military and direct law enforcement. These men and women can be found on the nation's waterways, in the air, in classrooms and on the dock, performing Maritime Domain Awareness patrols, safety patrols, vessel safety checks and public education.
The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary was founded in 1939 by an Act of Congress as the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve and re-designated as the Auxiliary in 1941. Its 30,000 members donate millions of hours annually in support of Coast Guard missions.
The release is available at: http://www.auxpa.org/releases/auxaction/061005.html
The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary is composed of uniformed, non-military volunteer civilians who assist the Coast Guard in all of its varied missions, except for military and direct law enforcement. These men and women can be found on the nation's waterways, in the air, in classrooms and on the dock, performing Maritime Domain Awareness patrols, safety patrols, vessel safety checks and public education.
The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary was founded in 1939 by an Act of Congress as the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve and re-designated as the Auxiliary in 1941. Its 35,000 members donate millions of hours annually in support of Coast Guard missions.
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Press Release Contact Information:
Wayne Spivak
US Coast Guard Auxiliary
Chief, External Communications
2711 Bellmore Avenue
Bellmore, NY
USA 117104319
Voice: 5163539155
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