CAMP DENALI, Alaska - In a break from the normal C-23 Sherpa mission of transporting cargo and people, Soldiers from F-Company, 207th Theater Aviation Company had the opportunity to assist in a search and rescue June 30 on the inlet between Peter's Creek Drainage and Eagle River Drainage.
A 911 call to Anchorage Fire Department's Communication Center at 7:36 a.m., came from a man telling them his boat was sinking and all he had for survival gear was an orange personal life vest.
Quick to respond, the fire department contacted the Alaska State Troopers, Merrill Field Tower, Anchorage Tower, and Chugach Fire Department to assist in the rescue.
Shortly after the 911 call, as Chief Warrant Officer Mel Rush, pilot; Warrant Officer Ross Wise, co-pilot and Staff Sgt. Jeff Austin, flight engineer, were departing Bryant Army Air Field on a mission to Bethel, they received a direct request from Anchorage Approach Control asking if they could see anyone in the inlet appearing to be in distress.
"The Anchorage Approach Control knew where we were because they could see us on the radar, so they asked us if we could see anything," said Rush. "We looked immediately to our right and we didn't see anything, so we asked if they wanted us to drop down and take a closer look. ACC said, 'If you have the time and the fuel and don't mind, that would be great.'"
Within minutes Rush noticed some debris in the water, and the victim holding on to part of his sunken watercraft, the crew immediately relayed the coordinates to Anchorage Approach Control. An unknown pilot of a Hughes 500c Helicopter overheard the transmission and offered to assist as well.
"It was good that we found him, but then the questions came up, How'd he get there? How long had he been there? Because we had only been told that there may be someone in the water in distress," said Rush. "We couldn't tell if he was wearing a water survival suit or just a float coat, if he was conscious or unconscious, or if he was standing on something or floating.
"Then the big question at that time was how long was he going to be there before someone could haul him out of the water?"
The C-23 marked the location of the boater and kept a visual on the man until the civilian Hughes 500c Helicopter was able to pull the man from the water shortly thereafter.
Although Anchorage Approach Control gave the Alaska Army National Guard crew the option of continuing on their mission, the crew all agreed that the right thing to do was to assist.
"We did what we thought was the right thing," said Rush. "We were happy to accommodate the request, the guy could have been in the water a lot longer if we hadn't helped, but because we were able to locate him before the helicopter got there, he was able to be pulled out of the water in a short amount of time."
The man was transported to Providence Hospital for medical assistance and possible hypothermia after being in the water for approximately 40 minutes.
The quick reactions of the Anchorage Fire Department, Alaska State Troopers, Anchorage Approach Control, the Alaska Army National Guard and an unknown good Samaritan led to the rescue, and life saved, of another Alaskan.