Five Rescued in Multi-National Effort

PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. - Canaveral-based Coast Guard Cutter Confidence crew aids in the rescue of five people Wednesday afternoon near Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The five people were rescued in a multi-national rescue effort after their vessel caught fire and sank 40 miles north of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The five survivors are Dominican Republican nationals who were located clinging to debris after spending approximately 15 hours in the water.

At 2:46 a.m. Wednesday, the Coast Guard received notification from the sailing vessel Wind Dancer that they were on scene with an approximate 50-foot vessel engulfed in flames and partially submerged with no people aboard.

The Coast Guard immediately diverted surface and air assets to the location to search for any missing mariners, including; the Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue System (AMVER) vessel Tug Navigator, the 210-foot Coast Guard Cutter Confidence, homeported in Port Canaveral, Fla., a Coast Guard HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Clearwater, Fla., deployed in support of Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos (OPBAT), a Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft from Air Station Miami, a Dominican Republic navy patrol boat, and a fixed-wing aircraft from the Dominican Republic air force also assisted in the search.

Four survivors were spotted and rescued at 4:45 p.m. by the cutter Confidence crew. A fifth mariner who was located about 45 minutes later by the HC-144 aircrew and picked up by Confidence crewmembers.

Due to medical concerns, all five survivors were hoisted by the Jayhawk helicopter and safely transported to the Dominican Republic.