Crime & Safety

Moffett Field Guard Update: Family on Boat Rescued; Sick Baby Being Treated

The 129th Rescue Wing team jumped from a plane as part of a mission to reach a sick 1-year-old on a stranded sailboat off the coast of Mexico.

A San Diego family with a sick infant stranded on a boat hundreds of miles off the coast of Mexico safely boarded a U.S. Navy ship this morning as part of a rescue that included a Bay Area-based Air National Guard team, according to a statement from the U.S. Coast Guard.

The parents and their two young daughters, including the sick 1-year-old, were rescued and brought aboard the USS Vandegrift frigate around 8 a.m. from their sailboat about 900 miles southwest of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Coast Guard officials said.

Sailors are medically evaluating the family aboard the Vandegrift, which is heading back toward San Diego, according to the Coast Guard. The rescue comes three days after a call from the family's sailboat, Rebel Heart, requesting assistance for their baby girl who was seriously ill.

The Coast Guard called the California Air National Guard, which sent a team --  members of the 129th Rescue Wing -- from Moffett Federal Air Field located between Mountain View and Sunnyvale.

The Bay Area-based team of four pararescuemen parachuted into the open ocean around 8 p.m. Thursday and reached the family's sailboat, where they provided medical aid to the infant and helped turn the disabled boat around, according to Air National Guard officials.

The four Air National Guardsmen were also brought aboard the Navy ship along with the family during this morning's rescue.

The family had recently left San Diego for a sailing trip across the Pacific Ocean, according to a website documenting their travels, www.therebelheart.com.

"Like" and follow the 129th Rescue unit here on Facebook. 

Copyright © 2014 by Bay City News, Inc. -- Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.