The SIU-crewed containership Horizon Falcon last month rescued two Chinese mariners whose Panamanian-flag vessel sank in the North Pacific after encountering rough seas due to a typhoon. The rescue effort took place over a 24-hour period on July 12 and 13, approximately 375 miles northwest of Guam.The two mariners were among 13 survivors from the 22-person crew of the log carrier Hai Tong No. 7. Three other bodies were recovered; six more remained missing when the U.S. Coast Guard suspended search operations July 15.
SIU members sailing aboard the Horizon Falcon during the rescue included Recertified Bosun Steven Bush, ABs Ahmed Almuflihi, John Dacuag, Jennifer Souci, Stanley Parker, Jack Kem, Earl Sparkes and Jerry Gonzaga, Electrician Ursel Barber, QMEDs Husain Ali and Gustavo Osorio, Recertified Steward Philip Lau and SA Milagros Clark.
“In this electronic information age we live in, it’s easy to forget how goods actually get to consumers—that merchant mariners still go to sea for months at a time to make the global economy work. And ever since man has been going to sea, there has been danger. But there also has been and will ever be brotherhood at sea that crosses any boundary. This rescue effort is a shining example of that,” said Charles G. (Chuck) Raymond, chairman, president and CEO of Horizon Lines and himself a former mariner.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our crew and their efforts,” added John V. Keenan, senior vice president and chief transportation officer for Horizon Lines. “I know our crewmen were thankful they could help bring home two fellow mariners, and only wished they could have located more.”
The Hai Tong No. 7 crew already had been in the water for two days when the 722-foot Horizon Falcon was contacted by the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Guam to divert for a distress call. The SIU-crewed ship arrived at the site before noon on July 12, where it encountered 30-foot swells in fierce seas, with 40-mph winds. The rescue further would be complicated by logs and other debris that came from the 420-foot Hai Tong No. 7.
According to reports from the company, the Horizon Falcon crew used a lifeboat and the ship’s portside pilot ladder to attempt a rescue of the distressed seafarers. A lifeboat with three seamen was dispatched with 18-to-20-foot swells and waves impacting from every direction.
One survivor was rescued, but as the lifeboat was being recovered, a large swell descended on the lifeboat, knocking the craft to a 45-degree angle and damaging the motor. The crew was ordered to abandon the lifeboat and climbed to safety with the survivor up the containership’s 40-foot pilot ladder. A second survivor was rescued by AB Dacuag who, while harnessed to the ladder, descended toward the water. While being submerged by swells, Dacuag attached a grappling hook to the survivor before both were winched clear of the sea to safety.
With flares from an Okinawa-based Navy P3 Orion 225 airplane providing some light from above, the Horizon Falcon continued searching for survivors and was eventually joined by the M/V Coral Emerald. The Horizon ship ran a search pattern in the area for four more hours until morning. A U.S. Coast Guard buoy tender from Guam arrived at the scene to assist and relieve the Horizon Falcon, which was running low on fuel.
Arriving in Yantian, China, the vessel’s destination, the two rescued seamen reported to local media crews that they were very well cared for on board the Horizon Falcon. Representatives of the government of China were on hand to express their appreciation for the efforts of the Horizon Falcon captain (Tom McDorr) and crew.
The United States Coast Guard Amver offices in New York City also recognized the efforts of the Falcon crew. “These actions are to be commended and do not go unnoticed. Your willingness to participate in the Amver system is testimony to ensuring that no call for help goes unanswered… This underscores your commitment to safety at sea,” said Benjamin M. Strong, director of marketing, Amver Maritime Relations, U.S. Coast Guard.
Cmdr. Frank Genco, chief of the Coast Guard’s search and rescue branch in Honolulu, added, “The immediate response by so many mariners is impressive. Mariners truly understand the importance of helping out their fellow sailors. The Coast Guard may be farther away and mariners have to rely on each other to help out in times like these.”
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