The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Decisive returned to its homeport after a 32-day patrol deployed to the Windward Passage to assist the 7th Coast Guard District in illegal migration interdiction, search and rescue and law enforcement operations.
Coast Guard air crews detected an unseaworthy and overloaded sailing vessel in the Windward Passage Nov. 12. The Coast Guard Cutter Decisive intercepted the sailing vessel 21 nautical miles northwest of Matthew Town, Great Inagua Island, where their small boat crews worked through the night to safely remove 171 Haitian migrants from their vessel. Once the migrants were aboard the cutter, they received food, water, shelter and basic medical attention.
The Decisive repatriated the migrants to Cap Haitien, Haiti Nov. 14. The Decisive crew also conducted extensive training to improve crewmember proficiency in areas such as flight operations, damage control, engineering, seamanship and navigation, combat systems and medical readiness.
The Decisive is a 210-foot medium endurance cutter with 75 crewmembers aboard.
[mappress] Press Release, December 4, 2013; Image: USCG