Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet assists disabled vessel with nine people onboard

On Saturday morning, August 19, U.S. Coast Guard Sector North Carolina received a call via VHF-FM radio channel 16 that the 43-foot sport fisher Bazinga ran aground near Roanoke Sound Channel Light 10, and was taking on water with nine people aboard.

A commercial towing vessel arrived on scene to assist the vessel and was able to temporarily secure the source of flooding. The vessel had ripped a hole in its port rudder post mount, as well as dislodged its port drive shaft.

A 29-foot Response Boat-Small (RB-S) from U.S. Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet arrived on scene, transferred the passengers to the RB-S, and transported them to Wanchese Harbor. The RB-S returned to the Bazinga and transferred two station personnel to the sailboat to assist with dewatering efforts. No injuries were reported.

“With the help of Towboat US, crews were able to effectively control the flooding with damage control techniques and portable dewatering pumps to get the vessel towed to a haul out,” stated U.S. Coast Guard Station Oregon Inlet in an update. “This case serves as a reminder of how dangerous the shoaling in the area can be, luckily everybody involved was unharmed and made it home safely.”