600 Foot Amver Ship Rescues Two Missing Sailors in the Pacific
OutdoorHub 06.10.12
The Amver participating bulk carrier Solar Africa rescued 2 men from their 23 foot skiff near Chuuk in the Pacific Ocean on June 5, 2012. The 2 sailors were on a voyage from Namwin Atoll to Weno, Chuuk and were reported overdue, prompting the search.
The 623 foot bulker was contacted by a Marine Corps C-130 aircraft to assist in the the search. Along with the Amver vessel, the U.S. Coast Guard coordinated with Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, the Marine Corps C-130 aircraft, and local rescue boats from the Federated States of Micronesia.
Amver, sponsored by the United States Coast Guard, is a unique, computer-based, and voluntary global ship reporting system used worldwide by search and rescue authorities to arrange for assistance to persons in distress at sea.
The crew of the Solar Africa were able to locate the skiff, launch a small boat, and rescue the two sailors. The Liberian flagged ship then sailed towards Chuuk to meet a local fishing vessel to transfer the survivors. There were no reports of injuries to the sailors.
The Solar Africa, managed by Sojitz Marine and Engineering Corporation of Japan, enrolled in the Amver system on April 12, 2011 and earned one Amver participation award.
With Amver, rescue coordinators can identify participating ships in the area of distress and divert the best-suited ship or ships to respond. Vessels send periodic position reports to the Amver center until arriving at their port of call. This data is able to project the position of each ship at any point during its voyage. In an emergency, any rescue coordination center can request this data to determine the relative position of Amver ships near the distress location. On any day there are over 5,000 ships available to carry out search and rescue services. Visit http://www.amver.com to learn more about this unique worldwide search and rescue system.
