We've read a few of Tougias' non-fiction sea rescue books, and again he captures the sheer, gut-wrenching force of a whipped up Atlantic ocean in a storm sailors and rescuers must pit themselves against to survive.
This time, it's to rescue three sailors in a sailboat the US Coast Guard isn't even aware is on the sea because of a registration glitch with an older emergency beacon system. When the Sean Seamour II is caught in storms just outside the Gulf Stream, enormous waves flip the boat and the new emergency system sinks and never transmits a signal! But the captain has an older system, which works as designed, and becomes their lifeline. Unfortunately, it carries the registration of the captain's previous boat, one he'd sold a long time ago before installing it in the Sean Seamour II.
It takes rescuers a while to figure out who they're headed out to rescue, but eventually they reach the captain's wife, and she's able to connect the dots.
Meanwhile, enormous waves roll the boat several times, injuring one of the men and near-drowning them. They wait until the absolute last moment to abandon ship. They're a dark blip on a dark ocean in dark, stormy skies, and yet the Coast Guard helicopter manages to spot them and lower a rescue swimmer to reach their lifeboat. I had no idea that was even possible!
You never know until the rescue is complete who's going to make it and who won't. We've read a few of Tougias' books and know the ocean can be deadly.
I'm not spoiling the end. You'll have to read to find out. But this was one of those seat-gripping stories because it's based on a true story.
Enjoy!
