MOBILE, Ala. — The Coast Guard is calling attention to the dangers and risks of hoax distress calls after launching multiple air and boatcrews from three states during an extensive five-and-a-half hour search in the vicinity south of Horn Island, Miss., Friday.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Mobile received a distress call on VHF-FM channel 16 at approximately 9 a.m. stating that a boat was on fire and there were four people going into the water south of Horn Island. The search took place 20 nautical-miles south of Horn Island and within Mississippi Sound and involved one boatcrew from Coast Guard Station Pascagoula, Miss., an MH-65 helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans and an HC-144 aircrew from Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile.
The three assets from the three units searched an 88 square-mile area in response to the distress calls, which resulted in negative sightings of distress. Four times in the past six weeks, a male voice has spoken of a boat fire and people going in the water on VHF-FM channel 16. Channel 16 is only used for hailing and distress; mariners in the area heard the call and notified the Coast Guard. In all cases, the male did not respond over the radio as aviation and boat resources were launched.
"False distress calls like this tie up valuable assets like aircraft and boats, waste taxpayer money and put our crews at risk every time since we take every distress call seriously," said Cmdr. Eric King, chief of response for Sector Mobile. "And they impede the ability of first responders like the Coast Guard and our partners to respond to real distresses where real lives may be in genuine peril."
The Coast Guard is requesting anyone who has any information in these distress calls to contact the Coast Guard Sector Mobile Command Center at (251) 441-6213.
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Coast Guard urges public not to make hoax distress calls
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