Page 51: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (February 2001)

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