Coast Guard Rescues 23 Sailors From Tilting Ship Off Aleutians
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Helicopters hoisted 23 crew members from a listing cargo ship to safety on Monday night, ending a day-long rescue effort as 10-foot waves slapped the ship’s tilting deck hundreds of miles off Alaska’s Aleutian Islands.
Yesterday, with the crew safe on Adak Island, the Coast Guard and the ship operators turned their attention to salvaging the massive car carrier.
The 654-foot Cougar Ace was floating on its side, unattended until a Coast Guard cutter arrived to monitor it, Petty Officer Richard Reichenbach said. He said the fate of its cargo of 5,000 cars was unknown, but said officials believe the vehicles are still on board.
“It’s like a giant parking lot inside,” Officer Reichenbach said. “I think the worst thing that could have happened is they broke loose and are all piled up on top of each other.”
The Cougar Ace had been carrying cars to Canada from Japan when it began tilting late Sunday night. The crew sent out an SOS, but the nearest Coast Guard ship was a day’s journey away.
By the time a Coast Guard aircraft arrived and was able to drop three life rafts for the crew, the ship was at an 80-degree angle, nearly on its side.
The roiling waters shoved the rafts underneath the dipping port side of the ship before the crew could secure them.
