A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew rescued three men from a disabled fishing boat in Alaska’s Bristol Bay on Sunday.
The Coast Guard received a distress call from the operator of the 32-foot boat reporting engine failure and a fear that the vessel would drift onto a rocky shore nearby.
Jayhawk and Hercules aircrews traveled more than 250 miles to perform the rescue. The weather at the scene was reported to be 35-mph winds and 5-foot seas.
Because of the rolling seas, the fishing crew was instructed to abandon ship one by one to be hoisted to safety.
“We use our air assets to complement each other during long-range cases,” said Chief Petty Officer Michael Haselden, a watchstander at the 17th District command center. “A second set of eyes during a search-and-rescue case gives our responders an extra layer of safety while they perform their duties.”
The boat ran aground shortly after the fishermen were rescued.
