Update 1: Search continues for missing tour helicopter on Kauai: USCG partner agencies rescue 187 people 17 miles southwest of Turks and Caicos Islands
Update 1: Search continues for missing tour helicopter on Kauai: Coast Guard, partner agencies rescue 187 people 17 miles southwest of Turks and Caicos Islands
HONOLULU — The Coast Guard, working with partners, is establishing an incident command post on Kauai in response to the missing commercial helicopter, Friday.
“The search continues for the seven people and any sign of the aircraft on Kauai,” said Lt. Chloe Harmon, command duty officer, Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu. “We appreciate the substantial assistance of our partners to continue the search overnight and maximize search efforts in the area.”
A Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crew and MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Barbers Point will conduct first light searches. A Coast Guard Station Kauai 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew will also arrive on the scene at first light and search.
The Coast Guard Cutter William Hart (WPC 1134) will arrive in the search area around 8:30 a.m. The U.S. Navy Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 37 MH-60R Seahawk helicopter crew will launch for a search at 9 a.m. Further Department of Defense air support, with the approval of the Pacific Air Forces, has come from the Civil Air Patrol for additional search efforts in the morning.
In addition to military support, Kauai Fire Department is coordinating local efforts from the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Kauai National Guard, and commercial helicopter support. KFD will also provide their Air-1 helicopter for inland canyon searches beginning at first light.
Upon notification, just after 6 p.m. Thursday of the overdue helicopter, Coast Guard watchstanders at JRCC Honolulu initiated an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast, launched a Coast Guard Dolphin aircrew, contacted DoD for HSM-37 Seahawk support, and launched the William Hart.
KFD was contacted and is coordinating ground searches of the shoreline. Barking Sands Security also organized ATV searches of the coastline. There are no signs of the helicopter.
The Dolphin helicopter crew conducted three search patterns for the evening along the northwest portion of Kauai. The HSM-37 Seahawk crew flew a five-hour search of the northwest shoreline area.
Friday’s forecast includes continued winds around 28 mph with wind waves at 7 feet, a northwest swell of 6 feet, and scattered rain showers. A small craft advisory is in effect for the waters around Kauai and northwest Oahu.
21 Dec
The Coast Guard, Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) and Turks and Caicos Islands Police (TCIP) rescued 187 people approximately 17 miles southwest of Turks and Caicos Islands, Saturday.
The Coast Guard Cutter Seneca (WMEC-906) crew and a Her Majesty’s Bahamian Ship crew arrived on scene and embarked the 187 people between the two ships. The Seneca crew took 86 people and the Bahamian ship took 101 people. The Seneca crew transferred the survivors to the TCI Police Marine Unit with no reported injuries.
A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, forward deployed to the Great Inagua, Bahamas, spotted a 30-foot vessel carrying 187 people. Coast Guard 7th District watchstanders and the Coast Guard liaison officer for the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands coordinated a response with the RBDF, TCIP and the Seneca crew.
The Coast Guard Seneca crew destroyed the 30-foot vessel as it posed a hazard to navigation.
“Safety at sea is our number one priority and we are always grateful to work with our international partner agencies to save lives,” said Lt. Cmdr. Justin Matejka, Coast Guard liaison officer for the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands. “This case involved 187 people on a 30-foot boat with no safety or communication equipment. That’s over a hundred lives traveling in an unpredictable, unforgiving environment with no safety net. Without our intervention many people could’ve been injured or worse.”
Coast Guard searching for tour helicopter off Kauai’s Nā Pali Coast
HONOLULU — The Coast Guard is searching for seven people overdue aboard a tour helicopter on Kauai, Thursday.
“The weather conditions are challenging. We have trained crews responding and on scene searching for any signs of the helicopter and those aboard,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Robert Cox, Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu.
The owner of an overdue tour helicopter contacted watchstanders at JRCC Honolulu at 6:06 p.m. They stated the aircraft was due back at 5:21 p.m. from a tour of Kauai’s Nā Pali Coast with one pilot and six passengers. Two of the six passengers are reportedly minors. The aircraft is equipped with an electronic locator, but no signals have been received.
The watchstanders directed the launch of an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter and crew from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, currently on scene searching, and coordinated for additional support from the U.S. Navy Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 37 at Kaneohe Bay for just after midnight. They also directed the launch of the Coast Guard Cutter William Hart (WPC 1134) and crew from homeport in Honolulu.
Further searches are scheduled with a Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane and crew and a fresh Dolphin helicopter crew at first light if needed.
Weather on scene is reportedly 4 miles visibility due to clouds and rain. Winds are at 28 mph. Friday’s forecast predicts continued winds around 23 mph with wind waves at 6 feet and scattered rain showers.
Nearly 80 percent of Kauai is uninhabited, and much of that is a state park. Kauai’s natural beauty is accessed or viewed daily by visitors aboard helicopters from several tour companies depending on the weather. Common points of interest include Jurassic Park Falls, the Hanapepe Valley, Waimea Canyon, the Nā Pali Coast, the Hanalei Valley, and Mt. Waialeale.