Coast Guard rescues 6 hunters stranded by sea ice 122 miles north of Nome

A US Coast Guard helicopter crew rescued six hunters after their two vessels became stranded by sea ice on Wednesday morning.

According to a press release, the walrus hunters were on board two 22-foot skiffs when they were cut off from open water by sea ice about a 122 miles north of Nome. The hunters called Alaska State Troopers but later lost communications, the Coast Guard said.

Troopers contacted the U.S. Coast Guard, who responded with a C-130 plane to locate the hunters and a Jayhawk helicopter to hoist them to safety.

“An Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew hoisted three boaters from one skiff cut off from open water by ice,” wrote Petty Officer Lauren Steenson in the press release. “The aircrew then picked up the other three hunters from land and transported them to Shishmaref, approximately 122 miles north of Nome.”