By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Coast Guard helped two boaters to safety over the weekend after their sailboat ran aground 30 miles northwest of Sitka, the Coast Guard said.
No one was injured and the 38-foot sailing vessel George Gray was towed to Sitka on Sunday morning.
The sailors called the Coast Guard via VHF radio at 5:43 p.m. Saturday reporting they had run aground near Slocum Arm, lost power and were taking on a small amount of water in the engine room.
A Coast Guard Air Station Sitka helicopter arrived at 9:41 p.m. with a dewatering pump, which the rescue swimmer helped the boaters use.
The Cutter Anacapa reached the scene at 8:50 a.m. Sunday, got the two sailors aboard and took the George Gray in tow. Later, the Maritime Safety and Security Team Honolulu, operating a 29-foot response boat out of Sitka, took the sailboat under tow and arrived in Sitka at midmorning Sunday.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Lexie Preston said conditions at the time of the call were 7-knot winds and 5-foot seas, with a temperature of 60 degrees.
In a statement today, Petty Officer 1st Class Jared Buchmiller, Sector Juneau command duty officer, said: “The success of the safe tow was due to the excellent coordination between the Sector Juneau watchstanders, the Air Station Sitka crew, the Anacapa crew, and the MSST Honolulu crew, currently based out of Sitka. The skillful teamwork of all crews involved was exceptional.”
No information was available about the route of the sailboat, the identity or hometowns of the boaters, or the homeport of the vessel.
