Jan Wesner Childs
The M/V Bonnie G takes on water after it ran aground off the U.S. Virgin Islands in the wake of Tropical Storm Philippe on Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023.Sign up for the Morning Brief email newsletter to get weekday updates from The Weather Channel and our meteorologists.
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued 12 people from a cargo vessel that was taking on water off the U.S. Virgin Islands as Tropical Storm Philippe moved through the region Wednesday.
"Winds have gusted as high as 35 mph in St. Thomas and visibility has been obstructed by rainfall, fog and sea spray," weather.com digital meteorologist Jonathan Belles said. "Waves around the Virgin Islands may have been as high as 6 feet in unprotected waters."
The Coast Guard responded to the ship's distress call around 3:41 a.m. Wednesday, according to a news release. The crew was abandoning ship and loading into two life rafts and a lifeboat.
All 12 people were safely transferred to a USCG boat.
“This vessel grounding was a very close call and I commend our watchstanders and responding boat crew for their efforts rendering assistance to the people who were aboard the Bonnie G and bringing them to safe harbor,” said Capt. Jose Diaz, commander of Coast Guard Sector San Juan. “There is still much work ahead of us to investigate and learn the causal factors of this incident."
Diaz said one of the main priorities would be to assess any potential environmental threat from the 195-foot Bonnie G, including hazardous chemicals or other pollutants.
The boat is reported to have approximately 13,000 gallons of fuel onboard, as well as several vehicles.
Philippe will become non-tropical into the weekend but will bring rain to the northeast as it moves up the coast.
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Weather.com reporter Jan Childs covers breaking news and features related to weather, space, climate change, the environment and everything in between.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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