Heroes on the High Seas
On Sunday, December 17, 2000 a rag-
ing storm was brewing off the coast of
Virginia. Record-breaking waves were
measuring anywhere from 30-40ft. and
the wind was gusting at about 70 knots.
In the middle of the Atlantic, (220 miles
off the coast of Norfolk, Va. to be exact),
a 600 ft. (182.8 m), 21,000-ton cruise
ship was in trouble, its crewmembers
ready to abandon ship into the cold
ocean. With only seconds to decide the
fate of his vessel, the captain of the Sea
Breeze I, placed a mayday call via the
vessel's Inmarsat Standard-C distress
feature, indicating that the now-defunct
Premier Cruise Lines' vessel might sink.
air base in Elizabeth City, N.C. was heli-
copter pilot Lt. Randy Watson and his
Co-Pilot Lt. Steve Bonn, who were
waiting to see how the day's events
would transpire. Bonn, who only began
ii-ons
his tour with the Coat Guard in August,
called the SeaBreeze I rescue, some-
thing that "you wait your whole life for."
For Bonn, however, his moment came
early in his career as he had only carried
his second mission that morning. Bonn,
who previously flew Black Hawks for
The USCG helicopter approaches the distressed
vessel, (photo courtesy of USCG).
By Regina P. Ciardiello,
associate editor
The dramatic rescue of SeaBreeze's 34
crewmembers began on that Sunday
morning, when Eileen Joyce received
an alert at COMSAT Mobile's South-
bury, Conn, land earth station. Joyce
described the message that came
through as one that signaled the vessel's
inability to navigate due to a loss of
power. As the lead operator on duty,
Joyce fastidiously alerted the U.S. Coast
Guard station in Portsmouth. Va. via a
faxed message. Upon receiving the mes-
sage that a 600-ft. (182.8 m) cruise ship
was in distress and its crew was ready to
abandon ship, the Coast Guard knew
that this was not your average rescue
mission.
Through the power of SeaBreeze's
Inmarsat terminals, which up until then
had been "barred" for commercial traffic
due to Premier's entrance into bankrupt-
cy this past September, Joyce overrode
the "bar" and activated the Mini-M
voice terminal onboard the vessel, thus
establishing voice satellite communica-
tions between the distressed vessel's
captain and the USCG Station in
Portsmouth.
The conversation that transpired
would be one that allowed the Coast
Guard to assess the situation at hand
the ship's engine room was flooded, had
no power and could sink in a matter of
seconds.
SeaBreeze I, which was en route from
Halifax, Nova Scotia to Charleston, S.C.
for lay-up work, first experienced signs
of doubt off the coast of Virginia. A
product of the recently bankrupt Pre-
mier Cruise Lines' "Big Red Boat"
fleet, the vessel, which was now in the
possession of Cruise Ventures 3, was
headed south to be prepped for a possi-
ble sale. Mother Nature, however had
other plans for the ill-fated vessel.
On duty that night at the Coast Guard
February, 2001 www.maritimetoday.com 43
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