NEW ORLEANS — The Coast Guard shared incredible video of a water rescue, as Tropical Storm Barry continues to creep toward the coast of Louisiana.
According to the Coast Guard, five people had to be pulled from a vessel that ran aground about 23 miles, southwest of Gulfport, Mississippi.
Officials said they received a distress call from the vessel around 9:45 a.m. Thursday morning, when Barry was still roughly 100 miles south of the mouth of the Mississippi River.
Crews launched a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter aircrew from the Coast Guard Air Station in New Orleans to assist. Crews arrived at 11 a.m. and pulled the first three passengers to safety. After dropping them off in Gulfport and refueling, the aircrew returned to rescue the other two passengers and a Coast Guard rescue swimmer who stayed behind.
All the passengers were safe, officials said.
The Coast Guard reminds hurricanes and tropical storms can be deadly, and the Coast Guard's ability to conduct rescues can be significantly limited or non-existent at the height of a storm.
Boaters, they said, should be prepared, stay informed and heed storm warnings.
Photos: Coast Guard rescues 5 boaters from Gulf
Tropical Storm Barry's wind and rain were starting to hit parts of Louisiana early Friday as New Orleans and coastal communities braced for a drenching from what's expected to be the first hurricane of the season.
A hurricane warning was in effect along the Louisiana coast, and forecasters said the storm could make landfall as a hurricane by early Saturday.
National Hurricane Center Director Ken Graham said pockets of Louisiana could have as much as 25 inches of rain.
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