Long Shot Fire
The 72 foot long fishing vessel Long Shot caught fire while working on the B-P oil spill research in the Gulf of Mexico near Panama City, Florida. The five crewmen on board fought the fire with extinguishers, but were not able to beat back the flames. The crew went to the liferaft hoping the fire would die down. Once the fire had gone down, they attempted to reach the cabin and contact the Coast Guard. However, the smoke in the cabin was too thick to reach the radio, but they were able to contact the Coast Guard by using a satellite phone. The Coast Guard dispatched a fixed-wing aircraft which spotted the five men in a life raft and passed their position to the Cutter Sea Hawk. The Sea Hawk picked up the 5 men and brought them back to Panama City. No reports of injuries. The incident is under investigation.
