DUNGENESS — The Coast Guard rescued two people from a de-masted 49-foot sailboat in the Strait of Juan de Fuca on Tuesday morning.
At about 10 a.m., the Coast Guard received a report from a person on shore who spotted a sailboat in distress about a mile east of the Dungeness Lighthouse, said Petty Officer George Degener, spokesman for Coast Guard District 13 in Seattle.
It was initially reported that a person was in the water, but that report was incorrect, Degener said.
The Coast Guard dispatched a 47-foot response boat and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Air Station/Sector Field Office Port Angeles.
At about 11:05 a.m., crews reached the stricken sailboat, which had lost both its mast and steering in 8- to 10-foot waves and 30-knot winds, Degener said.
“Two people were on board. Both were wearing life jackets but were suffering from hypothermia and seasickness,” he said.
The names of the people on board the sailboat were not available Tuesday afternoon, but the Coast Guard said they were a 40-year-old man and 26-year-old woman.
Degener said the response boat began to tow the boat to John Wayne Marina, but the rough seas caused the tow line to separate from the sailboat.
Both of the people on the sailboat were transferred to the response boat, and the sailboat was abandoned, he said.
At 12:50 p.m., the response boat arrived at the marina, and the two people on the boat were transferred to a waiting ambulance and sent to a hospital.
Degener said he did not know what hospital they were taken to.
The sailboat was later found beached on Dungeness Spit, and there was no pollution reported to be associated with the boat, he said.
While the two sailors were wearing life jackets, the water was 48 degrees Tuesday, Degener said, cold enough that those going out on the water should also wear dry suits.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at arice@peninsuladailynews.com.
