Page 33 - The Heroic Rescue of the Crew of the Kismet II

ISSUE : Issue 70

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1996/6/1

available men ready to clear a mile of path to the top of the cliff where rescue operations will be spearheaded.... "Smith of ham station VelAO reported (the Kismet II) to be directly under an over? hanging cliff which slopes downwards at an angle making rescue operations almost impossible.... "Earlier in the day a Navy 'copter tried to contact the freighter but was unsuc? cessful. Lt. Cmdr. Roger Fink, co-pilot of the helicopter, said three lines were dropped to the ship and two reached. But because of the slope in the cliffs rescue was impossible. "'It would be difficult if not impossible to get a man up this incline,' (said Fink). 'At one time we were showing 60 miles per hour, and we weren't moving an inch....' "Ham operator Smith has been on the scene since 7:15 a.m. Friday with portable radio equipment. He was able to drive a jeep and tractor right to the edge of the cliff and relay messages to his wife, Kay Smith, ten miles away, (who) then relayed to ham opera? tor Bob Wicks in Sydney and messages reached Halifax via regular communication lines. "Smith reported he couldn't see the ship earlier in the morning because of the over? hanging ledge and heavy snow. He said later he could see some of the 28 [actually 21] crew members scampering about the ship.... "The cliffs, he said, were covered by about six inches of wet, sticky snow.... "Early this morning efforts were being made by the RCMP rescue teams on the scene The helicopter crew responsible for the rescue operation, from HMCS Shearwater Naval Station near Dartmouth. Left to right: Petty Officer Paul Smith; Able Seaman Lawrence Vipond; Lt. Cmdr. Roger Fink, co? pilot of the helicopter; and Lt. Cmdr. John H. Beaman, pilot of the air? craft. Photo above left: the Sikorsky H04S #877, soon to be on display at the Shearwater Aviation Museum. to lower walkie-talkies to the boat. Winds were reported up to 35 miles per hour.... "Most of the day (Smith said) waves were breaking over the ship's mast pushing it further into the shore. "The only avenue the crew of the stricken ship have now of evacuation is by rope up the O IVIONTHLY COURSES O A ward-Winning Staff of Dive Instructors will introduce you to tlie Underwater Beauty of Cape Breton '14 Wentworth St. Sydney, NS BIP 5H7 SALES * SERVICE * RENTAL PH/FAX (902) 562-6061 HnP7/WWW.C0MPU.CL0NE.NS.CA/SCUBA-TECH| ATTENTION PARENTS OF CHILDREN SIARHNG SCHOOL FORTHEHRSrUME If your child is between 4-6 years of age he/she will receive a second dose of measles/mumps/rubella (MMR) vaccine, free of charge, as part of a province-wide immunization program. A second dose means your child has a less than one per cent chance of getting measles, and will have extra protection against mumps and rubella (german measles). The vaccine wiQ be given to children at the same time as their pre? school booster. Children who are entering Grade Primary in September, 1996 and who have already received their booster, should return to their doctor or pubUc health nurse to get the MMR vaccine before school starts. Nova Scotia ''ygf' Department of ''' Health 33

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