BOOTHBAY HARBOR — A United States Coast Guard press release tells the story of heroic efforts of our local service members, arriving within minutes to rescue three fishermen after their commercial fishing vessel took on water and sank 23 miles south of the Lincoln County port.
The incident escalated rapidly, following an initial mayday call from the crew of the Vesta Renee around 7:03 a.m. yesterday morning, which prompted a multi-unit response that rescued three mariners before lunchtime. While one fisherman was treated for minor hypothermia, thankfully, there were no other injuries sustained by the crew.
Sector Northern New England received a radio transmission just after 7 a.m. from the three-person crew on the Vesta Renee. They had reported that their vessel was taking on significant water and were intending to abandon the ship, per a Coast Guard press release.
Authorities directed the crew to activate the Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon aboard their vessel which aided location efforts, after the crew confirmed their absence of life rafts and personal flotation devices in possession.
Minutes later, the 47-foot lifeboat crew from Coast Guard Station Boothbay Harbor, accompanied by an HC-144 Ocean Sentry fixed-wing aircraft and MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew out of Air Station Cape Cod, arrived on scene in a dominant rescue effort.
The district specifically coordinated air assets to converge on reported beacon positioning which allowed for the integration of air and watercraft to dynamically locate the desperate crew.
Our local service members proceeded to retrieve all three members of the Vesta Renee from the water in under one minute after commencing their effort, with the rescue being successfully completed in a surgical manner.
The absence of life raft and personal flotation devices made the effort far more urgent, as noted in the official release. Coast Guard procedures nonetheless ensured a successful outcome through established operating protocol during emergency activation and deployment.
Coast Guard spokesperson, Lt. Jeanpierre Freeman stated “Our crews are constantly training for situations like this so they can respond as quickly as possible when lives are at risk. Because of that preparation and the crew’s fast response, all three fishermen were recovered from the water within minutes of arriving on scene.”
The rescue occurred in waters that are vital to Maine’s commercial fishing industry that forms a cornerstone within our state identity. There were no other details released on the situation or the mishap that led to the vessel sinking, with the names of the fisherman withheld. A safe ending to this frightening situation illustrates the operational readiness and precision maintained by Coast Guard Station Boothbay Harbor in their continued service to our regional waterways.
