Fourteen of the sixteen member crew of the tall ship HMS Bounty have been rescued after being forced to abandon ship some 90 miles off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.
The ship was built in 1960 as a replica of the original HMS Bounty and used in the 1962 production of Mutiny On The Bounty, starring Marlon Brando. It also appeared in such films as Treasure Island, Yellowbeard, Spongebob Squarepants: The Movie and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
The owners of the 180-foot, three mast ship contacted the Coast Guard late last evening after they lost radio contact with the crew. The Coast Guard subsequently received a signal from the Bounty‘s emergency position radio beacon and dispatched an HC-130 Hercules aircraft, which established communications with the Bounty’s crew.
The vessel was taking on water and was without propulsion in 40 mph winds and 18-foot seas forcing the crew to don cold water survival suits and life jackets before launching in two 25-man lifeboats with canopies. Two Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters rescued the crew at approximately 6:30 am. A C-130 Hercules aircraft remains on scene and is searching for the two missing crewmembers and a third Jayhawk is en route to assist search and rescue efforts.
Via WTKR.
