Coast Guard assists missing boaters near South Padre Island waters

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A 33-foot Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boat crew from Coast Guard Station South Padre Island approaches a 31-foot catamaran taking on water with three men aboard approximately 30 miles offshore South Padre Island, Texas, April 29, 2023. At 10 p.m. on April 28, family members reported the men as overdue after the three boaters didn’t return from a trip to the offshore Perdido Rig. (Courtesy: Petty Officer 3rd Class Ronald Fitch/U.S. Coast Guard)

Three boaters who were initially reported missing by their families were found Saturday 30 miles northeast of South Padre Island by the Coast Guard.

On Friday, the Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi received a notification at 10 p.m. regarding three overdue boaters aboard a 31-foot catamaran.

According to a news release, the men had departed Island Moorings Marina in Port Aransas at 10 a.m. Thursday, and were heading for Perdido Rig — located about 180 miles east of SPI.

However, the men did not return as expected to Port Aransas by late Friday night, the release stated.

A 33-foot Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boat crew from Coast Guard Station South Padre Island approaches a 31-foot catamaran taking on water with three men aboard approximately 30 miles offshore South Padre Island, Texas, April 29, 2023. At 10 p.m. on April 28, family members reported the men as overdue after the three boaters didn’t return from a trip to the offshore Perdido Rig. (Courtesy: Petty Officer 3rd Class Ronald Fitch/U.S. Coast Guard)

As a result, watchstanders contacted personnel at Perdido Rig, who reported they saw the catamaran near the rig Friday at about 3 p.m. Then, the Coast Guard directed the launch of an HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplane from the Corpus Christi air station.

After the search began, the Ocean Sentry crew heard the boaters hail them on VHF-FM channel 16, which led to the boaters activating both the DSC distress alert function on their radio and their Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, or EPIRB.

With the alerts, command center personnel vectored the aircrew to the boaters’ position and directed the launch of a 33-foot Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boat crew from the Coast Guard Station in South Padre Island.

Upon arriving, the Ocean Sentry crew saw the three men bailing water out of the catamaran. According to the release, the on-scene weather conditions were 10 foot swells with winds of 34 mph.

Members of a 33-foot Special Purpose Craft–Law Enforcement boat crew from Coast Guard Station South Padre Island confer with three boaters aboard a 31-foot catamaran docked at Sea Ranch Marina on South Padre Island, Texas, April 29, 2023. The Coast Guard crew assisted the boaters, who had been reported as overdue and started taking on water about 30 miles northeast of South Padre Island. (Courtesy: Petty Officer 3rd Class Ronald Fitch/U.S. Coast Guard)

The SPC-LE crew rendezvoused with the catamaran and escorted the men safely to Sea Ranch Marina on South Padre Island. Emergency medical services personnel assessed the boaters. There were no injuries reported.

“This case highlights the importance of diligently checking the weather forecast and filing an accurate float plan with family members, including intended arrival times,” Senior Chief Petty Officer Josuah Chears-Stevens, command duty officer, Sector Corpus Christi, said in the release.

“We urge all mariners venturing offshore to carry a properly registered EPIRB and fully charged satellite phone on board. This equipment can mean the difference between life and death.”

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