The Coast Guard last week rescued four people whose tug boat was sinking in the Gulf of Alaska south of Cordova.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak directed an air crew to respond to the 110-foot sinking tug Sea Ranger on Aug. 1, which they located in the Gulf of Alaska 130 miles south of Cordova around 1:08 p.m.
At that time, the vessel crew on the tug reported they were not in distress, and Coast Guard officers delivered a dewatering pump and returned to the air station.
“Dewatering pumps are often the first line of defense for a vessel taking on water and a primary way of combatting flooding,” said Coast Guard Petty Officer John Hightower. “Other methods include plugging or securing the source of flooding, with abandoning ship being a last resort in the case of uncontrollable flooding.”
But then around 3:57 p.m., the people aboard the tug boat reported to the Coast Guard that they were adrift, had smoke in the engine room, and that the vessel was taking on water and they were unable to start the pumps.
As it was becoming more dire, the Coast Guard dispatched an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew and an HC-130 Super Hercules aircrew to the sinking vessel to evacuate the group.
At around 7:42 p.m. the Coast Guard hoisted all four individuals from the tug, and then transported them to Cordova for medical evaluation.
For the group of four, no medical concerns were reported.
“Given its remote location in the Gulf of Alaska, this challenging rescue resulted in the best possible outcome and demonstrated the dedication and professionalism of Coast Guard aircrews,” said Lt. Evan Sutton, search and rescue mission coordinator for the Coast Guard Arctic District. “These mariners were well-equipped and demonstrated the importance of having appropriate lifesaving and communications equipment on hand, such as life rafts, survival suits, and long-range distress communication devices.”
Since the incident escalated to a complete evacuation, Hightower said it’s likely the tug boat went down.
“All personnel were evacuated from the vessel, so there has been no one on scene to monitor it, but the vessel is presumed to have sunk,” Hightower said. “The owner of the vessel has contracted with a commercial charter plane to overfly the area to try and verify that it did indeed sink and can’t be salvaged.”
The vessel had departed from Juneau on July 29 and was en route to Seldovia, near Homer, with no commercial cargo on board, according to Hightower.
