U.S. Coast Guard rescues 86-year-old man and dog off California coast

An 86-year-old man and his dog were rescued from a disabled sailboat drifting hundreds of miles off the California coast after being missing for over two months. The man was sailing the Willow Wind from Astoria, Oregon, to Pago Pago, American Samoa, when contact was lost on August 20.

Following an overdue alert on October 24, the U.S. Coast Guard launched a search operation involving aircraft and the Coast Guard Cutter Robert Ward. An emergency beacon was later detected, leading a Coast Guard aircrew to spot the vessel approximately 460 miles off San Diego.

The motor vessel Grand Orion reached the sailboat and brought the man and his dog aboard, though rough seas initially delayed the transfer. A Coast Guard helicopter subsequently rescued them about 170 miles west of Ventura, California. The man was flown to San Diego for medical evaluation at Scripps Mercy Hospital.