Park rangers and Eastham police and firefighters responded to a Coast Guard report of a fishing boat in distress just before 5 a.m. on Monday, March 27th. Upon arrival, the rangers found the 45-foot fishing vessel Josephine capsized on Coast Guard Beach and being pounded by a ten-foot breaking surf. A search was begun and within minutes an Eastham police officer found a man walking out of the 38-degree water, covered in diesel oil and very hypothermic. He told rangers that there was a second man and a small pug dog on the boat. The dog was found alive and wandering on the beach a short time later. Rangers established a unified command to search for the second man with Eastham and Coast Guard personnel. Rangers searched the beach on foot and with ATV?s, police and fire units provided additional search vehicles, and Coast Guard rescue boats and helicopters covered both land and water. Around 8 a.m., rangers discovered a broken window in the former lifesaving station at Coast Guard Beach and soon found the second man inside the station, wrapped in a shower curtain for warmth. He said that he?d broken into the building to obtain shelter, taken a hot shower, then fallen asleep. Both crew members were transported to Cape Cod Hospital for medical evaluation and treatment. The cold and scared pug dog was taken to a local vet. The crew members told rangers that they were en route from Maine to the town of Chatham on Cape Cod when they ran aground. The boat evidently struck a sandbar, after which they lost power and it capsized. Park maintenance employees utilized heavy equipment to remove numerous pieces of debris strewn across several hundred yards of beach. They were assisted by rangers and the park?s wildland firefighters. The boat?s owner will be billed for the costs of the cleanup. Coast Guard pollution control officers determined that no offshore diesel oil fuel cleanup could be conducted due to extremely hazardous seas and the rapid dispersal of the approximately 50 gallons of fuel that was spilled. Coast Guard personnel and rangers will work together on the investigation.
