On July 28th, 2022 a 23 ft. Panga boat (named Pakin 2 Boat) with a 40 HP Yamaha Enduro left Pohnpei with a crew of 7 towards the outer atoll of Pakin, 30 miles off shore to the west of Pohnpei on the Federated States of Micronesia. Not knowing they were going to meet a rogue wave off the coast of the island.

On that crew were 5-man, one woman and one 3 year old child. 

Around 6 pm on the same day, in Pohnpei, Patterson Lawrence started to get calls from the USA Coast Guard telling him their ResQLink 400 had been activated around 20 miles off shore during a rogue wave by Pohnpei.

So Here is that Story

Captain Theodor Wenio from Pakin left Pohnpei in the afternoon of that day. At some stage seas got rough and a rogue wave flooded the boat.

The stern of the boat sunk and only a few inches of the bow was above the water. Everyone was swimming with less than needed lifejackets. The bucket in which the ResQLink was in drifted away with the wind and rogue waves, but one of the crew men was able to get it.

ResQLink deployed, they proceeded to release the 40 HP Yamaha Enduro from the transom. They were able to drop the outboard and the stern of the boat came up.

At that stage the boat was like a floating bathtub. Slowly they were able to bail most water out and stay inside the boat overnight.

The rescue mission left at first light next morning and found them on the spot indicated by the ResQLink 400, 10 miles offshore of Pohnpei. They had drifted around 10 miles during the night.

The ResQLink 400 did exactly what it is built for, and work perfectly. The USCG was super helpful through all the rescue time frame.

Thanks for ACR and the USCG this first activated ResQLink in Pohnpei, Micronesia saves 7 lives!

Unfortunately, we could not get a picture of the boat crew as they live at Pakin, 30 miles from Pohnpei.