Two Oregon fishermen were stranded 180 miles off Coos Bay, Oregon, when their troller lost all propulsion in a storm with 40-knot winds and 8- to 12-foot seas.
Coast Guard watchstanders at the 13th District command center in Seattle received a report at 9:21 p.m. Friday that the 66-foot fishing vessel Lodestar had lost power. The watchstanders diverted the Stratton, a 418-foot Legend-class cutter on patrol, to rescue the fishermen.
The Stratton and its crew arrived on scene at 1 p.m. Saturday and placed the Lodestar in tow. Proceeding back toward Coos Bay, the Stratton crew rendezvoused with a 47-foot motor lifeboat crews from Coast Guard Station Coos Bay approximately 45 miles off Coos Bay.
The lifeboat crew took the Lodestar under tow and brought the vessel and fishermen back to shore Sunday, mooring the Lodestar safely at Charleston.
“I’m extremely proud of this crew,” said Capt. Stephen Adler, the commanding officer of Stratton, in a brief statement describing the rescue. “They showcased remarkable proficiency and seamanship rescuing these two fishermen, who were subject to the perils of the sea, far from land. Yesterday, the crew certainly lived up to her ship’s motto of ‘We Can’t Afford Not To.’”
