peterfz30/iStock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — A U.S. Navy helicopter on Thursday rescued two civilians whose private aircraft crashed into the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Dominica.
The two civilian passengers aboard the aircraft are being treated aboard the USS Wasp, the Navy amphibious assault ship that is assisting with relief efforts off the island battered by Hurricane Maria.
“Today, USS Wasp was contacted by French Coast Guard today via bridge-to-bridge radio that a blue and white civilian Cessna with two persons on board was reported to be going down in the Caribbean,” said Commander Mike Kafka, a spokesman for Fleet Forces Command.
A MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter aboard the USS Wasp “successfully recovered both civilian survivors,” said Kafka. “They are being treated on board the Wasp.”
The amphibious assault ship is part of the U.S. military effort to assist Dominica a week after Hurricane Maria destroyed much of the island’s dwellings.
The ship had earlier participated in relief efforts in the U.S. Virgin Islands following Hurricane Irma.
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