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Search continues for missing skiff
HONOLULU—The U.S. Coast Guard continued its search Wednesday for a skiff with two people aboard near Ujae Atoll.
Assisting in the search is an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, Oahu, the Republic of Marshall Islands’ patrol boat RMIS Lomor, and AMVER vessel Mell Seringat.
Watchstanders at Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu received notice from the Marshall Islands Sea Patrol Office Saturday afternoon that two people had been swept out to sea aboard a 12-foot skiff that day.
The skiff originally had four people aboard transiting from Ujae Atoll to Bock Island when the engine reportedly failed. Two men jumped overboard and swam back to Ujae while the remaining two stayed aboard the vessel.
Strong winds reportedly swept the skiff out to sea before the men could restart the engine.
As of Tuesday, approximately 9,666 miles have been searched since the skiff went missing. The Coast Guard and its partners continued their search about 281 miles from the Ujae Atoll. Ujae Atoll is about 1,455 miles east of Guam.
To calculate search areas in the complex currents of the Pacific Ocean, watchstanders use the Search and Rescue Optimal Planning System, or SAROPS, a software system that uses simulated particles generated by users in a graphical interface. These particles are then influenced by environmental data to provide information on search object drift. Using information on a point of origin and local currents, it calculates the most likely area to find a person in the water.
AMVER, sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard, is a unique, computer-based, and voluntary global ship reporting system used worldwide by search and rescue authorities to arrange for assistance to persons in distress at sea. With Amver, rescue coordinators can identify participating ships in the area of distress and divert the best-suited ship or ships to respond. (USCG)
