Rescue: The Right Gear at the Right Time

A life-or-death situation Monday evening illustrated the importance of having basic safety gear on board, even when you’re simply making a short lap around the Central Bay. 

A male solo sailor, whose name has not yet been released, signaled for help at 6:29 Monday evening via his portable VHF radio’s distress button, which directed Coast Guard resources to his exact lat/long location. He was sailing his Pearson 40 sloop about a half mile NE of Treasure Island at the time, with both jib and main up. The boat was taking on water, apparently from an unknown cause.

A rescue boat crew was dispatched from Coast Guard Station San Francisco (at Yerba Buena Island), in addition to a helicopter rescue crew from Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco (adjacent to SFO).

According to Coast Guard sources, the singlehander, who was uninjured, was pulled from the water by the rescue boat crew. "The radio, coupled with the life jacket he was wearing, enabled us to quickly locate and safely recover him from the water," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Jamison Larson of Station San Francisco.

By yesterday afternoon, the boat had drifted to a location near the Berkeley Pier, and we’re told that a salvage operation is now underway.

The incident serves as a reminder to all of us to keep our communications gear charged and fully functioning, and if we choose not to wear our PFDs, we should at least keep them very close at hand. Be safe out there. Big summer winds and strong currents make San Francisco Bay one of the most exciting places in the country to sail. But also one of the most potentially dangerous.