This Day in Coast Guard History – Feb. 24

1964- A U.S. Coast Guard ice skiff rescued 25 persons from an ice flow that had broken loose from the shore near Camp Perry, Ohio. A similar rescue took place almost simultaneously at St. Clair Shores, Michigan when another Coast Guard ice skiff and a police helicopter removed five more from an ice flow.

1987- Coast Guard attorney LCDR Robert W. Bruce, Jr. became the first member of the armed forces to argue a case before the Supreme Court in uniform when he represented the Coast Guard in Solorio vs. United States on 24 February 1987.

1989- Coast Guard units searched for survivors of United Airlines Flight 811 after it crashed off the coast of Hawaii.  The units included a HC-130, two helicopters, and the CGCs Cape Corwin, Mallow and Sassafras.  No survivors were found and the units then assisted in the retrieval of debris.

(Source: USCG Historian’s Office)