Rescue at sea
Stockham rescues 20 off Solomon Islands

By MSC Public Affairs

Yun Fa Zoi, a 200-foot freighter, is stuck on a reef created by the damaging earthquake that preceded the April 2 tsunami. Before the vessel ran aground, it was used to ferry tsunami aid workers. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Andrew Meyers

A helicopter from Military Sealift Command afloat prepositioning ship USNS GYSGT Fred W. Stockham rescued 20 people from a Taiwanese flagged freighter that ran aground on a coral reef near the Gizo harbor in the Solomon Islands in the late hours of April 12. Most of those rescued were New Zealand Red Cross and aid workers who were in the area to provide assistance to victims of the tsunami that struck the region.

Earlier in the week, Stockham was directed to the Solomon Islands to be ready to conduct operations to support and assist relief efforts on the ground. The crew received a distress call from the Gizo port authority requesting they provide assistance to a 200-foot freighter named Yun Fa Zoi. After running aground, the vessel was foundering in nearly 12-foot waves and had become unseaworthy. The Gizo port authority requested that Stockham provide helicopter assistance to rescue the aid workers and one severely injured crew member. "When the distress call was made, the ship's crew and military detachment were quick to respond and well prepared to handle the crisis," said Stockham's civilian master, Capt. Perry Seyler. "I'm very proud of the ship's surgeon and the members of the helicopter detachment, who put themselves in harm's way to rescue the aid workers a nd the crew member."

An HH-60H Seahawk helicopter prepares to rescue the stranded Taiwanese-flagged vessel, Yun Fa Zoi, that ran aground on a reef near the Solomon Islands. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Andrew Meyers

Stockham's surgeon left on the ship's seven-passenger HH- 60 helicopter within an hour of the distress call and minutes later arrived in the vicinity of Yun Fa Zoi. He treated injuries, and the 20 people were brought aboard the helicopter using the helicopter's external hoist. The helicopter then flew to Gizo, where the passengers were met by local police and medical personnel to receive further assistance.

Stockham is a U.S. government-owned, roll-on/roll-off and container ship operated by a crew of 38 civilian mariners and has 102 military personnel embarked. The ship is one of 35 ships that preposition military cargo in strategic locations around the world, which enables the equipment and supplies to be delivered ashore quickly in the event of conflict.