Coast Guard Plucks Nine Trapped by Island Blaze
Source Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif.
Jan. 08--LIBERTY ISLAND -- U.S. Coast Guard crews rescued nine people who were trapped by a brushfire on a Delta island, north of Rio Vista on Saturday, authorities said.
Montezuma Fire Protection District crews fighting the fire contacted the Coast Guard at 11:53 a.m. after coming across four people on Liberty Island who did not have an escape route and finding another five on a boat just off the island that was surrounded by the fire, Lt. Chris Hanzlik of the Coast Guard said.
A Coast Guard crew from Station Rio Vista arrived with a 25-foot-boat and evacuated the four people off the island and towed the pleasure craft to safety. Coast Guard personnel also checked all 11 homes on the island and conducted an air search to make sure nobody else was stranded.
The identifications of those rescued are not expected to be released, Hanzlik said. It was not immediately clear where the nine people were from or why they were on the island, Hanzlik said, but none needed medical attention.
The cause of the fire was still under investigation.
Rick Hurd covers public safety. Contact him at 925-945-4780 and follow him on Twitter at Twitter.com/3rdERH.
Copyright 2012 - Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif.
