Woman, child, tortoise, cat rescued from sailboat offshore Hawaii

The U.S. Coast Guard and Navy rescued a distressed woman, her daughter and their pets, a cat and a tortoise from a sailboat that had been beset by weather about 925 miles off the coast of Hawaii.

Watchstanders at Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) Honolulu received a distress alert shortly after 12:30 p.m. on Aug. 24 from an emergency radio beacon roughly 925 miles east of Hawaii, according to a news release from the Coast Guard.

The watchstanders issued a SafetyNET broadcast which disseminates maritime safety information to all ships in the area, conducted a query of vessels and launched an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew to search for the stranded people in the sailboat.

The airplane crew spotted the 47-foot French-flagged vessel called Albroc and a 47-year-old woman aboard the boat issued a mayday call, explaining that herself, her seven-year-old daughter and their pets needed rescuing.

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The woman also said that there was a deceased man on the boat.

The Hercules crew was unable to establish direct communication with the woman but observed her lighting two distress flares and the sailboat drifting and taking waves over the beam, the Coast Guard said. 

Watchstanders requested assistance from the Navy's Pacific Fleet and 3rd Fleet, which diverted the crew of USS William P. Lawrence (DDG 110), an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer homeported in Pearl Harborto, the sailboat's position. They also asked for assistance from the master of the Seri Emperor, a 754-foot Singapore-flagged liquid petroleum gas tanker that was about 290 miles south of the sailboat.

At 9 a.m. on Aug. 25, a Hercules crew arrived at the scene and observed a woman and girl waving their arms before retreating inside the cabin. The aircrew attempted to communicate with the two boaters by hailing them on the radio and dropping message blocks, but were unsuccessful.

Later that day, at 5:20 p.m., the Seri Emperor arrived at the scene but was unable to rescue the boaters because of deteriorating weather conditions ahead of Hurricane Gilma, which was approaching the area. The tanker crew remained near the stranded sailboat until 5 a.m. on Aug. 26, when the William P. Lawrence arrived.

The William P. Lawrence had a six-hour window to safely conduct boat recovery operations, according to the Coast Guard, noting seas greater than 25 feet forecast within 12 hours of their position and the damaged condition of the sailboat.

"I am extremely proud of the crew’s professionalism in planning and executing the safe recovery of two persons at sea on a disabled vessel in worsening conditions," said U.S. Navy Cmdr. Bobby Wayland, commanding officer of William P. Lawrence. "My boat crew – in particular the coxswain – demonstrated deft boat handling and good judgement in approaching the distressed vessel and transferring the survivors. I also appreciate the remarkable coordination and information provided by the USCG throughout the entire operation – very cool to see the Navy / Coast Guard team work together so smoothly." 

A small boat crew from the Navy ship launched and rescued the woman, girl and their pets from the sailboat. But because of weather conditions on the scene at the time of the rescue, there were eight to 10-foot seas and 15 mph winds, the deceased man could not be safely recovered.

"While saddened by the loss of the sailing vessel’s master, I couldn't be prouder of the combined efforts of the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy who saved the lives of two other passengers," said Vice Adm. John Wade, commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet. "I'm particularly grateful for the professionalism exhibited by the crew of USS William P. Lawrence who executed the rescue flawlessly under extremely dangerous conditions."

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At 5 p.m. on Aug. 28, the William P. Lawrence moored at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Honolulu, where representatives from the Coast Guard and the Honorary Consul of France in Hawaii received and provided care for the survivors.

"Through tireless planning, coordination and teamwork, our watchstanders pieced together the key elements needed for such a dynamic search and rescue case," said Kevin Cooper, search and rescue mission coordinator, JRCC Honolulu. "The use of an EPIRB was also crucial and allowed our aircrews and partners to pinpoint the sailboat’s location. We are grateful the crews of the Seri Emperor and William P. Lawrence were able to reach the mother and daughter, who were caught right in the path of Hurricane Gilma."

The sailboat remains adrift about 1,000 miles east of Honolulu, the Coast Guard said.