TowBoatUS San Diego recovers vessel 28 miles offshore after USCG remove crew in rough seas

What started out as a productive late season fishing trip for a couple of fishermen turned into a fight for their safety. The trip started about 5:00 a.m. Monday with a run to the tuna grounds in relatively calm waters. The fishing was good catching some 20-25 pound Yellow fin Tuna but the weather started to deteriorate so it was time to head back to port.

Around 5 pm the engine sputtered and the boat became disabled. Calls for help came unanswered due to a malfunctioning radio. A distress flag was tied to the 6′ radio antenna in hopes that a passerby would see it. As darkness fell the weather started turning the seas and the swell built, a call came into the USCG reporting a vessel waving a distress flag. With night fall already a factor and no communications with the vessel, the USCG deployed a 33′ Rescue boat. The vessel was located late Monday night 28 miles southwest of Point Loma. Once the USCG arrived on scene they deemed it unsafe to attempt a tow due to extremely rough weather so they took the mariners off the vessel and headed back to the safety of San Diego Bay.
 
Vessel Assist Boat “Shelter Island” with Captain Eric Lamb and Captain Shane Thompson headed to the reported location in a wind and rain storm. The seas were rough with a large swell as the 900 horsepower tow boat pounded its way out to sea. Once at the reported position Captain Eric started a search pattern looking for the disabled 19′ Wellcraft. Finally the flickering white light dimming from the dying batteries were sighted and the USCG was informed the vessel was found.

Several attempts were made to attach a carabiner clip to the bow eye but the seas were too rough in the dark night to get a line on the boat. Captain Shane Thompson would have to board the boat and attach the line. After a few passes Captain Eric maneuvered the towboat and Shane leaped onto the stricken vessel. Eric tossed the tow line and the boat was ready for tow. Shane jumped back on the Shelter Island and they were off in tow. With the monster seas the tow back to San Diego was a slow go making 4.5 knots. Once the vessel was in the harbor it was brought to Pearson’s Fuel Dock until the owner could get back to San Diego to recover his boat.

The USCG performed a video report of the vessel and its condition. Captain Eric, thinking quickly, added 20 pounds of Ice to the cooler holding the Yellow fin Tuna caught by the mariners before they broke down. After a short wait the owner backed his trailer into the water and Captain Eric skillfully towed the broken vessel onto the trailer.

After all was said and done, at the end of the day the USCG did an outstanding job of locating and saving the crew of the broken boat, and Captains Eric Lamb and Shane Thompson used their trained skills as Vessel Assist Captains to locate and recover the vessel and safely returned it to the owner.

The lesson of this incident is “Always make sure your equipment is in good working order.” A functional radio would have made this situation a simple Assist where the USCG would only have to monitor the communications between Vessel Assist Shelter Island and the disabled boat.