Keesler cops on patrol save stranded boaters Published June 10, 2008 By Susan Griggs Keesler News KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, MISS. -- Training and timing were key elements in a recent rescue by members of the 81st Security Forces Squadron. On the first official night on duty for Falcon Flight, three 81st SFS members rescued three people on a sailboat that ran aground during low tide, leaving them stranded in Biloxi's Back Bay. Maj. Joseph Musacchia, 81st SFS commander, said Falcon Flight had just completed a week of rigorous training. "Their training covered all-terrain vehicle operation, mountain bike law enforcement patrol procedures, physical training, boat safety and operation, interpersonal communication skills and problem-oriented police methods," the major explained. "The course gave them additional skills to protect and secure Keesler within the integrated base defense concept." June 2, Staff Sgts. Douglas Wickline and Cheryl Trexler and Airman 1st Class Sarah Coble were three hours into Falcon Flight's first night patrol along the base's shoreline in a 19-foot center console boat. "The training we'd just received included knowledge on different types of boats and their hulls -- how they moved through the water," Sergeant Trexler said. "We also learned about channel markers, low and high tides and mandatory boat lighting. Our general training also covered watching surroundings and being aware of which boats were in our area of responsibility. As Falcon Flight returned to the marina, members saw a 30-foot sailboat near the channel marker north of the marina. "We watched the boat for awhile, then I noticed a white flashing light that looked like an SOS signal -- we didn't learn these signals in class, but I knew them from boating experience as a child, so we went to check it out," Sergeant Trexler recalled. The sailboat's hull had a 4-foot drop, but the water was only 3 feet deep, according to Falcon Flight's depth finder. The craft had drifted about 100 feet outside the channel. The boaters, two active-duty members and a child, "had been on the water for two days -- they'd been stuck twice and the engine was inoperable, so they were using only sails," Sergeant Trexler stated. "The incident helped us realize how important it is to watch the tides and to stay in established channel ways." Falcon Flight tried to call the Coast Guard and the state Department of Marine Re-sources, but both had ceased patrols for the night. The team had two options: call a commercial company and have the stranded boaters towed in for a fee or let the boaters abandon ship and return to the base on the security forces' vessel. The boaters opted to return to shore with the Keesler cops, who took them home. "Without us being on the water, they could have been stranded several more hours before the tide came back in," Sergeant Trexler said. "Who knows how many other boats have been in the same situation?" "Our folks had limited experience in this particular type of situation, but they reacted swiftly and professionally to develop a quick solution to the problem," Major Musacchia pointed out. "They performed this rescue operation in the dark of night in very low tide. "All the training paid off," he added. "They did an outstanding job and some quick thinking. It was problem-oriented policing and positive community interaction at its finest."