CAMP PENDLETON : 4 Military Personnel Rescued Off Coast
Three Marines and a Navy corpsman from Camp Pendleton were rescued Friday after the engine on their boat broke down during their return from an ocean training exercise near Catalina Island.
Marine officials said the four men, members of the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company, were rescued about 5 a.m. after drifting for an undetermined period of time. The men, who were not injured, were spotted about 6 nautical miles off the coast of Camp Pendleton.
They were picked up by the Kirk, a Navy frigate, and taken to the Long Beach Naval Base.
Marine 1st Lt. Kevin C. Bentley, a Camp Pendleton spokesman, said the men were in a 22-foot rubber raiding craft powered by a 155-horsepower engine. The Marines and corpsman did a series of “combat proficiency dives” near Catalina Island before returning to Camp Pendleton.
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