Stranded sailors saved from sinking ship

The Coast Guard rescued five people from a sinking ship Saturday roughly 120 miles off the coast of Monterey, officials said.

Around 8 a.m., the 11th Coast Guard District Command Center received a distress signal from a personal locator beacon, Coast Guard officials said. An airplane flying at approximately 5,000 feet was able to identify the 65-foot sailing vessel in the vicinity of the alert location and confirmed that the ship, named the Flyin’ Hawaiian, was taking on water.

The Coast Guard responded with its aircrew, which was able to contact a tank ship named the Aqualeader that was 24 miles away from the stranded ship, officials said. Although the Aqualeader wasn’t able to remove anyone from the vessel, Coast Guard officials said it was able to help by blocking seas and wind for the Flyin’ Hawaiian.

The Coast Guard launched two helicopter crews, one from San Francisco and the other from Los Angeles, and officials said both were able to rescue the five people aboard the sinking vessel. All five people were transported to shore with no injuries, Coast Guard officials said.