Pikelot

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Pikelot
Andersen KC-135 crew locates missing mariners on lone island in the Pacific (cropped).jpg
The island as seen from the air in 2020
Federated States of Micronesia location map.svg
Cercle rouge 100%25.svg
Pikelot
Location of Pikelot in Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia
Geography
Coordinates 8°06′18″N147°38′47″E / 8.10500°N 147.64639°E / 8.10500; 147.64639
Area0.126 km2 (0.049 sq mi)[ citation needed ]
Length0.45 km (0.28 mi)[ citation needed ]
Width0.28 km (0.174 mi)[ citation needed ]
Highest elevation4 m (13 ft)[ citation needed ]
Administration
State Yap
Demographics
Population0

Pikelot Island is one of the outer islands of the State of Yap, part of the Federated States of Micronesia. It is a low coral islet, with a wet, tropical climate. [1] [ failed verification ] It is uninhabited. [2] Since the 1970s, sailors have stranded on the island on several occasions.

Contents

Flora and fauna

The island is known to have a rich ecosystem, with forest and scrub; and extensive fringing reefs. The islet is also home to a major seabird rookery, turtle nesting area and a few mangroves.[ citation needed ]

Inhabitants

Pikelot Catholic Chapel Chapelle de Pikelot.png
Pikelot Catholic Chapel

The islet has no permanent inhabitants, but because of the beautiful wildlife, there are often temporary visitors from surrounding atolls, such as Puluwat and Satawal, on turtle hunting expeditions. The trip to Pikelot is still carried out in Micronesian-style sailing outrigger canoes.[ citation needed ]

History

The first recorded European sighting was by Spanish naval officer Juan Antonio de Ibargoitia commanding the vessel Filipino in 1801. [3]

Inhabitants of the western Caroline Islands occasionally take refuge on the island to wait for bad weather to pass, or to make repairs to their vessels. [4]

Strandings

On September 15, 1975, 9 stranded were found on the island when a Royal New Zealand Air Force crew flying a patrol mission from Naval Air Station Agana, Guam, spotted an "SOS" carved onto one of the island's beaches. Food was dropped to the islanders by plane while MV Cook, a merchant supply vessel, was dispatched to the island from Guam. The stranded reportedly came from the island of Lamotrek, Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (since 1979 part of the Federated States of Micronesia). [5]

On May 10, 1979, a U.S. Navy P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft found a group of between 46 and 50 people on the island when the crew spotted an "SOS" as well as the words "food, water, we need rice" and "three head wounds" carved into the sand. Later communication with the group via radio indicated that some in the group, including children, were ill. MS Micro Trader, a Chuukese commercial ship, was sent to the island with food and medical supplies. A U.S. Navy aircraft dropped water and military rations on the island. [6] The group had reportedly been sheltering on the island due to unfavorable weather conditions. 18 of the group were later picked up by the Micro Trader and taken to the islands of Puluwat and Pulusuk. A group of 28 islanders opted to remain on the island to wait for better weather in order to return to Puluwat by sailboat. None among the group were seriously injured. [7]

On May 16, 1983, a U.S. Navy P-3 Orion flying from spotted the words "SOS No Food Water" in the island's sand. The Navy personnel dropped a container with food and water on the island and, via the military's search and rescue center, contacted the Trust Territory government, which sent a vessel to the island. [8]

On May 14, 1986, a U.S. Navy Reserve P-3 Orion crew spotted an "SOS" and shelters that appeared to have been constructed from a wrecked boat, finding that a group of between five and eight appeared to have stranded on the island. The P-3 crew dropped food and water, with the U.S. Air Force sending a C-130 Hercules from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, to drop additional supplies. The Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Honolulu coordinated for a ship to pick up the stranded. [4] [9]

The SOS sign assembled by missing sailors in 2020, seen from the aircraft that found them KC-135 crew finds missing mariners on Pacific island.jpg
The SOS sign assembled by missing sailors in 2020, seen from the aircraft that found them

On August 2, 2020, three missing sailors were found on the island. After being lost for three days, their SOS sign, assembled with palm branches laid out on the beach, was spotted by a KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft operated by members of the Hawaii and Pennsylvania Air National Guards, who had departed from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, to search for the missing vessel and its crew. The airmen then radioed their position to an Australian ship in the area. The men were delivered supplies and equipment by an ARH Tiger helicopter from HMAS Canberra as well as a United States Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point, Hawaii, and ultimately returned home aboard Micronesian Pacific-class patrol boat FSS Independence. [10] [11] [12] [13]

On April 9, 2024, three mariners were rescued from the island. They had set sail from Poluwat Atoll on March 31, 2024 and did not return. The search for them began on April 6, 2024. A U.S. Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime surveillance aircraft, dispatched from Kadena Air Base, Japan, spotted a "HELP" sign made of palm fronds on a beach on April 7, 2024. A day later, a U.S. Coast Guard Lockheed HC-130J dropped a radio to the three men. The morning of April 9, the mariners were rescued by U.S. Coast Guard personnel from Sentinel-class cutter USCGC Oliver Henry and were subsequently returned to Poluwat. [14] [15]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Pikelot Island". Marine World Database. January 31, 2009. Archived from the original on April 2, 2012.
  2. ↑ Richmond, Bruce M.; Reiss, Thomas E. (November 1994). Vulnerability of the natural coastal system to accelerated sea-level rise, Yap islands, Federated States of Micronesia: Case study preliminary reports (PDF) (Report). United States Geological Survey. p. 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 10, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  3. ↑ Robson, R.W. (1946). The Pacific Islands Handbook. New York. p. 142.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. 1 2 "Navy Investigates Island 'Castaways'". Tyler Morning Telegraph . United Press International. May 17, 1986. p. 13. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "9 Stranded On Tiny Island; Rescue Ship Expected Today". Pacific Daily News . September 19, 1975. p. 3. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "SOS in the sand: 50 sick on island". San Francisco Examiner . United Press International. May 11, 1979. p. 12. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Weather strands Truk Islanders". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier . Australian Associated Press. May 23, 1979. p. 7. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Pikelot signals SOS". Pacific Daily News . May 17, 1983. p. 6. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Matsunaga, Mark (May 16, 1986). "Group stranded on island, Coast Guard says". The Honolulu Advertiser . p. A3. Retrieved May 7, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Ebensberger, Richard P. (August 5, 2020). "KC-135 crew finds missing mariners on Pacific island". National Guard . Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  11. ↑ "HMAS Canberra assists in search and rescue". Department of Defence. August 3, 2020. Archived from the original on September 29, 2020.
  12. ↑ Doherty, Ben (August 4, 2020). "Missing sailors stranded on Pacific island saved by giant SOS in the sand". The Guardian . Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  13. ↑ "Beach SOS saves men stranded on tiny Micronesian island". BBC News. August 4, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  14. ↑ Lendon, Brad (April 11, 2024). "Pacific castaways' 'HELP' sign sparks US rescue mission – and an unexpected family reunion". CNN . Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  15. ↑ Muir, Sara (April 9, 2024). "U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Navy unite for maritime rescue, emphasizing community ties in FSM". U.S. Coast Guard Forces Micronesia / Sector Guam. Retrieved April 11, 2024– via DVIDS.


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