Don't these new Navy working uniforms make them easy to spot too?
Posted on 10/20/2010 5:02:18 PM PDT by republicangel
A Norfolk-based sailor who disappeared from a Navy destroyer training in the Atlantic was found more than five hours after he went missing.
The sailor could not be located during a muster around 12:15 today aboard the Mitscher, a news release from the Navy’s 2nd Fleet said. After a complete personnel roll call, it was determined the sailor was unaccounted for and presumed overboard.
A search began immediately with all George H.W. Bush Strike Group air and sea assets. The sailor was rescued about 5:40 p.m. off the coast of North Carolina. The sailor is undergoing a full medical examination aboard the aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush.
(Excerpt) Read more at hamptonroads.com ...
Man, what a place to be rescued...
Headline presumed written needs a rewrite
What kind of writing is that?
I’m not so sure about that. I think it states the facts clearly. As usual during these matters, they were presuming he was overboard. Once they found him, they knew he had been in fact overboard.
OK, I’ll buy that
My biggest fear in my seagoing days was being washed overboard, and watching the ship’s lights disappear in the distance. (shudder to think about it)
I bet that water out there is starting to get a bit cool. We were vacationing at the NC Outer Banks(not very far from the VA border) during the first of June, and the water seemed to be quite cool still. Wouldn’t be fun to be in it in Mid October for five hours.
This is true, the water temps are nothing like Florida. Even in the middle of the summer, I never think it is warm. :-)
Look up “Doug Hegdahl.”
Still, 5 hours by yourself on that big ocean gives you a lot to think about. I'm glad he's safe.
Wow, what a story.
NC ping please. This is one lucky sailor!
He had to stay afloat, and was likely trained to know how to make 'water wings' out of his pants (knot pant legs - capture air, put under arms.)
But, even with good training, a sailor in the water is very hard to see from on board a ship in any kind of surface chop. Most likely he was spotted from an aircraft.
What I really want to know is how he happened to fall overboard... because that just doesn't happen very often, unless a sailor is doing something awfully dumb.
Report says they are investigating. I will post when the media reports it.
Having done many searches for a PIW (person in the water) back in my CG days... this is nothing short of a miracle. A person floating the water is a tiny, tiny thing. It’s almost impossible to spot, especially from the air. Even when you know where to look... the chances of being seen are just abysmally small.
Don't these new Navy working uniforms make them easy to spot too?
So true! Been there, done that.
In this case, it may have been a chopper that literally 'stumbled' upon him. But if he was wearing white (likely) and the sea was calm - spotting him would be a little bit easier.
He/She must have missed their watch! 12:15 is an unusual time to be having muster.
Heh. True enough. But then again... somebody could be wearing hunter blaze orange and they’re still a tiny, tiny speck in a really, really big space. Almost impossible to spot.
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