Scooner sinks and two crew members presumed dead

ÖFor 44 hours, rescue crews searched more than 3,700 square miles but were unable to locate the two female crew members of the Vanuatu-flagged schooner De Gallant. The incident began early in the morning of May 21, when distress signals were received from the De Gallant.

A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Clearwater Air Force Base, deployed to Great Inagua, spotted two life rafts carrying six French citizens among the debris. These survivors reported that the schooner had run into a storm, taken on water and sunk, forcing the crew to abandon ship in life rafts.

The six survivors were lifted by the helicopter crew and transported to Coast Guard Air Station Miami in Opa Locka, Florida. All were in good health. Despite continued efforts by the Coast Guard and the Royal Bahamas Defense Force, the two missing crew members have not been located.