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Coast Guard, Air Force, Alaska State Troopers rescue boater near Anchorage, Alaska

U.S. Coast Guard Press Release | April 23, 2014

Estimated reading time 2 minutes, 23 seconds.

The Coast Guard, Air Force, Alaska Air National Guard and the Alaska State Troopers partnered to rescue a man in a deflating raft in Cook Inlet between Fire Island and Kincaid Park Tuesday night.
211th Rescue Squadron Alaska Air National Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane and 210th Rescue Squadron Alaska Air National Guard HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter crews arrived on scene first, deployed an Air Force pararescueman from the 212th Rescue Squadron Alaska Air National Guard into the water to assess the man. The Pave Hawk crew hoisted the pararescueman and the boater aboard and flew him to Providence Hospital for further evaluation. They were met by Alaska State Troopers at the hospital. 
Coast Guard Sector Anchorage watchstanders received a request for assistance from Alaska State Troopers at 7:00 p.m. They reported a man in a brown life jacket was in distress in the inlet aboard an inflatable raft with no means of propulsion, and the raft was losing air.
Sector Anchorage watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast requesting the assistance of other agencies or mariners in the immediate area and directed the launch of a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Kodiak to respond. 
Personnel at the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson responded to the UMIB advising that the Hercules and Pave Hawk crews were approximately five minutes away from the scene, closer than the Coast Guard Jayhawk crew. The Pave Hawk crew made a brief stop at JBER to pick up the pararescueman before arriving on scene and assisting the man. 
“This was a complex case that was only successful because of the close coordination with our partners in the Air Force, Air National Guard and Alaska State Troopers,” said Lt. Matthew Mitchell, Sector Anchorage search and rescue mission controller. “We frequently work with our search and rescue partners throughout the state to respond to distress cases as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

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