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Search suspended for man who fell overboard in FSM
CHUUK, Federated States of Micronesia—On the morning of Oct. 11, 2014, the Coast Guard District 14 commander, Rear Adm. Cari Thomas, suspended the search for a 32-year-old male who fell overboard when the vessel he and three other men were traveling in was swamped by a wave on a journey from Chuuk to Hall Islands in the Federated States of Micronesia.
The four men never made it to their destination on the afternoon of Oct. 5, 2014. The men were returning from a supply run from Chuuk when their vessel began taking on water and eventually capsized after being hit by a wave.
Responders from FSM searched the islands of Chuuk, Nowin, and Murilo for two days for the overdue vessel. U.S. Coast Guard Sector Gum received notification of the missing craft with four persons aboard on Oct. 7 and began coordinating efforts to assist in the search. Sector Guam enlisted support from passing commercial vessels and military air stations within the region to search the waters between Chuuk and Hall Islands.
On the evening of Oct. 8, the AMVER vessel Nord Venus located and recovered three persons in the water approximately 20 nautical miles north of Chuuk. The three men were part of the four-man crew that was reported overdue. The three survivors were taken to Chuuk for medical evaluations. No major injuries were reported and all three men are recovering from their ordeal.
On the afternoon of Oct. 9, Sector Guam received a report that a Good Samaritan vessel sighted the missing skiff approximately 30 nautical miles north of Chuuk and towed the vessel to Hall Islands. Despite locating three crewmembers and the 19-foot skiff, responders were unable to locate the fourth crewmember.
Searches were conducted Oct. 5 through 10. The six-day search was conducted by sea and air assets and encompassed nearly 5,453 square nautical miles.
Agencies involved in the search include FSM (small boats from Chuuk, Nowin, and Murilo atolls); AMVER vessels New Stage, Pro Emerald, and Nord Venus; U.S. Navy P-3 and P-8 aircrafts from U.S. Air Base Kadena; U.S. Coast Guard C-130 aircraft from Air Station Barbers Point; and U.S. Coast Guard Sector Guam. (USCG)
