The U.S. Coast Guard successfully rescued an injured man from his grounded sailboat near Sapelo Sound, Georgia, after it began taking on water. The man's distress call alerted authorities to the situation, prompting a swift response involving multiple Coast Guard units, commercial salvage, and McIntosh County Fire and Rescue.
On Wednesday afternoon, the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Charleston received an urgent distress call from a sailor onboard a 36-foot sailboat named Quicksilver. The sailor reported that his vessel had run aground near Sapelo Sound, Georgia, and was rapidly taking on water.
The Coast Guard immediately dispatched a Coast Guard Station Brunswick boat crew and a Coast Guard Air Station Savannah helicopter crew to assist. Commercial salvage also responded to the scene.
Upon arriving at the scene, commercial salvage attempted to prepare the sailboat for towing. However, during the process of recovering the vessel's anchor, the man aboard the grounded sailboat sustained a severe injury to his hand.
The Coast Guard Station Brunswick boat crew and McIntosh County Fire and Rescue personnel arrived on the scene and assessed the man's injury. They determined that his condition required immediate evacuation via helicopter for proper medical treatment.
The Coast Guard Air Station Savannah helicopter crew safely hoisted the man and a McIntosh County Fire and Rescue emergency medical technician from the sailboat and transported them to Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah.
Meanwhile, commercial salvage succeeded in ungrounding the sailboat and towing it to a marina in Valona, Georgia.
The U.S. Coast Guard emphasizes the importance of having a serviceable Very High Frequency (VHF) marine radio on board vessels. VHF radios are crucial in maritime emergencies, as they provide a reliable means of communication between boaters and rescuers.
In an emergency situation, mariners should make a mayday call over VHF radio on Channel 16, providing their boat name, position, and a description of the emergency. They should repeat this information three times to ensure the Coast Guard receives their distress signal.
The Coast Guard strongly advises against relying solely on cell phones during emergencies, as they have limited range and can be rendered inoperable if they get wet.
The successful rescue of the injured man from the aground sailboat underscores the importance of having a reliable means of communication in case of maritime emergencies and the swift response and collaboration of the Coast Guard, commercial salvage, and emergency medical services.
