Ponce De Leon Inlet News

Three boaters whose vessel was taking on water 25 miles northeast of Ponce de Leon Inlet, Fla., Wednesday, arrived safely at Coast Guard Station Ponce De Leon Inlet at 4:39 p.m. Wednesday. Crewmembers assigned to Station Ponce de Leon Inlet came to the aid of the three men, who reported a crack in the hull of their 23-foot vessel, Mo Money, Wednesday morning. The men made a temporary repair, using a life jacket to patch the hole, but the flooding worsened as the vessel was transiting to shore so the Coast Guardsman and the one boater who remained on the Mo Money were transferred to the Coast Guard vessel. A second Coast Guard boatcrew from Station Ponce De Leon Inlet arrived on scene, passed over another de-watering pump, and towed the Mo Money to the Coast Guard Station.

1898-The American schooner, Rouse Simmons had her cargo shift to starboard, giving her a heavy list and forcing her covering board up so she leaked badly. She was sighted by the station lookout coming around the SE point of North Manitou Island. The surfboat was launched and pulled out to her. She had 4 feet of water in her hold, and was leaking too fast for her crew to keep her afloat much longer. She was anchored on the advise of the keeper and the station crew rigged out her booms to port. The pumps were then manned by all hands, spouts rigged to discharge the water overboard, and after 4 hours of work she was freed and on an even keel. 1984-A fire broke out in a stateroom aboard the 506-foot cruise ship Scandanavian Sea while the vessel was five miles off the Florida coast.

Coast Guard Station Mayport, Fla., will welcome the arrival of one of the Coast Guard's newest high-tech rescue boats, the 47-foot motor life boat. Over the years the Coast Guard has been modifying its inventory with the intent to replace older vessels and aircraft with newer more technologically advanced ones. The 47-foot motor life boat brings advanced technology, which will aid in all missions of the Coast Guard including homeland security, search and rescue, law enforcement, environmental protection and recreational boating safety. The new design offers a rescue boat that is not only self-righting, but also, faster and more capable than previous motor life boats. The rescue boat promises to help save more lives than was possible with search and rescue technology of the past.

Coast Guard Aids to Navigation Team Jacksonville Officer in Charge Senior Chief Petty Officer Andrew M. Engle will pass command to Chief Petty Officer Timothy R. Tully, Thursday at 10 a.m. during a ceremony held at the Aids to Navigation Team Jacksonville, Fla. Engle took on the responsibilities as the Officer in Charge of the ANT in 1999. He will go on to take the duties as the executive petty officer on board the Coast Guard Cutter Maria Bray homeported in Mayport, Fla. Tully’s previous assignment was the Officer in Charge of the Aids to Navigation Team San Diego, Calif. Tully and his crew of 18 will be responsible for more than 1,100 aids to navigations from Tybee, Ga., to Ponce de Leon Inlet, Fla., including more than 150 miles of shoreline along the St. Johns River.