A four-member sailboat crew was rescued after a whale reportedly rammed their boat and caused it to sink 415 miles north of Hawaii. Their lives were saved by the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) after the sailors activated their Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB).

At 7:35 a.m. on July 25, the 40-foot Mureadrittas XL was severely damaged by a whale that crashed into them, according to the captain, Nick Barran. The lateral hit opened a hole in the starboard side and caused the vessel to take on water. The crew attempted to control the leak but saw that it was futile. They assessed their situation as life threatening and set off their ACR Electronics RapidFix™ 406 EPIRB.

Then, at 8:35 a.m., having launched the life raft loaded with essential survival water, food, clothing, communications gear and personal identifications, they boarded it to await rescue. Within minutes, an orbiting satellite picked up the EPIRB’s distress signal, and vital information pinpointing their location was relayed to the USCG District 14 Rescue Coordination Center (RCC) in Honolulu. Authorities made contact with next of kin and determined that the yacht was returning to California after completing the Pacific Cup sailing race.

A C-130 CG aircraft was launched from Honolulu and arrived on scene at 10:55 a.m. All four survivors were spotted in a covered life raft, and the CG plane circled overhead until a cargo ship 90 miles away could arrive to render assistance. The container vessel, Maersk Darwin, took the survivors aboard and, later, transferred them to the commercial fishing boat, Cammie M, which was heading to port in Honolulu. This allowed the freighter to continue on its voyage to China.

CG Petty Officer Michael De Nyse said credit for the successful rescue goes to teamwork and the sailors’ prior safety training. “Preparation is key to getting yourself out of trouble. They were very well prepared with food, water, a raft, a satellite phone and an EPIRB that offers dedicated information, in addition to their location,” De Nyse said. “It’s a great thing when you have fellow mariners work so well together. The Good Samaritans were instrumental in this rescue.”

Barran also praised the “perfect execution” of the rescue. “It was a textbook coordination by the Coast Guard. It doesn’t get any better than this. We were 415 miles away and ended up back on land in Honolulu within three days – amazing!” he exclaimed.