A US Coast Guard HC-130J Hercules aircraft parked on the flightline at Air Station Barbers Point, Oahu, HI, Aug. 15, 2024. This aircraft is used for search and rescue missions, maritime patrol, and logistical operations. Photo: US Air National Guard
Concerns are growing for the crew of a missing emergency sea ambulance in the Marshal Islands.
A search and rescue operation is underway after the vessel with four medical personnel on board went missing on Monday.
The country's health ministry confirmed that the 37-foot fiberglass sea ambulance left the Majuro for Mili Atoll, 67 nautical miles southeast of the capital, for a mass TB screening campaign just after midday local time.
According to the ministry, the vessel is equipped with communication and navigation systems to send a distress call and provide positioning information "provided the crew was familiar with their operation".
"However, no distress signal has been received."
Health Ministry spokesperson Charles Lomae told RNZ Pacific the situation is critical.
"The latest is the search and rescuer is still ongoing," he said on Thursday evening.
"We have not yet have any sighting of the sea ambulance."
He said the search area has been expanded using sea patrol boats and a HC-130 aircraft from the US Coast Guard.
"We hope to get more information later on in the evening and to proceed with our ongoing search in the next 24 hours before we can we can [make a] critical decision and share with everyone."
The US Coast Guard Forces Micronesia said: "Our HC-130 Hercules crew from Air Station Barbers Point and a US Navy P-8 Poseidon team from Kadena Air Base are searching diligently, supporting the RMIS Lomor 02 and Lomor 03 crews from the RMI Sea Patrol.
"The Pacific's remote expanses test us, but the resilience of this sea-connected community keeps us going," chief warrant officer Sara Muir, said.
"We're here for our Pacific partners and continuing to search."
