Coast Guard rescues man in sailboat south of Hilo
The Coast Guard says it helped a 73-year-old Canadian sailor get to Hilo Sunday after the man’s sailboat started taking on water.
The man was sailing his 44-foot vessel to Honolulu from Panama City and was reported being possibly overdue after missing a scheduled check-in on April 28.
The Coast Guard dispatched a HC-130 aircraft, MH-65 helicopter and fast response cutter from Oahu after receiving an emergency radio beacon alert at 3:21 a.m. Sunday. The aircraft located the 44-foot sailing vessel about 70 miles southeast of Hilo and dropped off a de-watering pump. The helicopter dropped off a rescue swimmer to get the pump aboard the sailboat and get it started. The cutter escorted the sailboat to Hilo.