Coast Guard Assists Trawler Taking on Water Near Oregon Inlet

On Sunday, October 28, the duty watch-stander at U.S. Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet received a distress call from an 80 ft. trawler taking on water 12.8 miles southeast of Oregon Inlet.

The vessel had two pumps on board but could not keep up with the water, as they already had a reported two feet on board.

Once on scene, the Coast Guard’s 47’ Motor Life Boat (MLB) crew passed their P6 dewatering pumps over to the vessel. Once the trawler had the pumps working and the water under control, the vessel began heading toward the inlet alongside the Coast Guard crew. While en route to the inlet, the vessel once again experienced difficulty in dewatering their bilge, and it appeared as if the P6 pumps weren’t going to be enough to stop the water entirely.

A Coast Guard helicopter from Air Station Elizabeth City was dispatched to hoist two additional pumps down to the 47’ MLB crew to assist in dewatering. Fortunately, these pumps were enough, and the vessel was able to control their flooding until they made it into the inlet with the Station Oregon Inlet crew. They were towed by the 47’ MLB the rest of the way after experiencing complications to their propulsion, and were brought safely to Wanchese harbor. “Thankfully, everyone arrived safely,” stated Station Oregon Inlet in an online update. “Bravo Zulu team on an eventful case!”