Man whose sailboat ran aground at Catalina Island is rescued

A man was rescued early Monday after his 25-foot sailboat ran aground on the back side of Catalina Island on Monday morning.

A passing vessel reported the sailboat on the northwest tip of the island about 8 a.m., according to the U.S. Coast Guard, which dispatched a helicopter that worked with a Baywatch boat to hoist the man from the sailboat and transport him to a landing pad in the village of Two Harbors.

The man, who was not identified, had anchored the sailboat near the area overnight, but the anchor didn’t hold and the boat was pushed into the rocks by the current, according to the Coast Guard.

The man is currently being medically evaluated on Catalina Island, although no injuries were reported. A salvage plan is being created to remove the sailboat from the rocks.

“Unfortunately, it’s a thing that occurs with a decent regularity,” Coast Guard spokesman Adam Eggers said of search-and-rescue missions involving recreational boats.

Boats breaking away from moorings, bad weather, operator error or boaters becoming disoriented on the water prompt many of the rescues, he added.

The Los Angeles sector Coast Guard rescued about 350 recreational boaters last year, Eggers said. Each rescue costs the Coast Guard between $5,000 and $10,000, he added.

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