The vessel was the 129-foot liftboat Seacor Power, according to Armond Batiste, a spokesman for Seacor Marine, which owns the vessel.
Coast Guard Capt. Will Watson told reporters that a crew of 19 was aboard the vessel when it departed at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday. Seacor Marine had told The Post that 18 people were aboard when it capsized.
Asked about the prospect of finding those still missing, Watson said officials remain hopeful.
“I’ll put it to you this way, whenever we engage, the Coast Guard engages in a search and rescue effort, we are hopeful,” he said during the news conference. “You can’t do this work if you’re not optimistic, if you’re not hopeful when you do it. … We’re one day approximately into this operation and we’re giving it all we got.”
Watson said that at the time of the incident, there were 80-90 mph winds, 7- to 9-foot seas and “extremely limited visibility.”
“That’s challenging under any circumstance. We don’t know the degree to which that contributed to what happened, but we do know those are challenging conditions to be out in a maritime environment,” he added.
Watson said details of the vessel’s mission and why it might have continued amid challenging conditions is under investigation. He said authorities are communicating with survivors and the company.
“We’re focused on the search and rescue effort more than anything right now, but those details will come out in the days and weeks ahead as we learn more about what went on,” Watson said.
The Tuesday incident occurred as a slow-moving complex of intense thunderstorms, which had unleashed damaging gusts around New Orleans that toppled trees and damaged roofs, moved over the Gulf of Mexico. The National Weather Service issued a special marine warning for coastal waters around Port Fourchon at 3:57 p.m., warning that severe thunderstorms could produce gusts of at least 39 mph (34 knots) and large hail.
“Boats could sustain damage or capsize. Make sure all on board are wearing life jackets,” the warning stated. “Return to safe harbor if possible.”
A ship in the gulf headed for Port Fourchon recorded a gust of 117 mph (102 knots), according to Payton Malone, a meteorologist for WWL-TV, the CBS affiliate in New Orleans. A weather buoy at Grand Isle, about 15 miles to the northeast, clocked a gust of 75 mph and tropical-storm-force winds (of at least 39 mph) lasting for about an hour.
The intensity and duration of high winds appeared to be linked to a phenomenon known as a “wake low,” a small-scale zone of low pressure that can flank strong thunderstorm complexes. This allowed seas to build higher than they would have otherwise.
“It’s been a crazy day meteorological with very impactful winds from both a line of thunderstorms, and a long duration strong wind event due to a wake low,” wrote the Weather Service office serving the area around New Orleans on Tuesday night.
Severe weather was continuing to affect southern Louisiana and adjacent waters Wednesday. The Weather Service highlighted the region for an elevated risk of both severe thunderstorms and flash flooding. A bulletin issued at 9:14 a.m. Wednesday cautioned that the area could see 3 to 5 inches of rain through 3 p.m. In a discussion Wednesday morning, the Weather Service wrote that that weather pattern was very similar to Tuesday’s but that severe thunderstorm winds should not be quite as widespread.
Watson said even with reports of challenging weather Tuesday, “we did not anticipate the weather that we saw.”
He said that crews were “actively searching,” even as difficult conditions continued into Wednesday, with up to 8-foot seas.
“I won’t tell you those conditions can’t be challenging but we are out there and we are committed to this search and rescue effort,” he said.
Archie Chaisson III, the Lafourche Parish president, told The Post on Wednesday morning that some family members of those onboard the capsized vessel had arrived at Port Fourchon on Tuesday night. Seacor is coordinating communication with families and next of kin, according to the Coast Guard.
“We continue to pray for the men on the vessel and their families and rescue operators that are out, that we can bring everyone home safely,” Chaisson said.
“Ive NEVER Heard soo many MAYDAY calls in my life!” a man named Bruce Simon, who said he was on a boat in the gulf at the time, posted to Facebook along with images of heavy seas. “Waves are breaking over the bow! A liftboat flipped. … An other boats have flipped an are taking on water!”
Amid the gale, the Seacor Power capsized. The liftboat is designed with a wide, open deck and can raise itself out of the water on stilts to perform maintenance on oil rigs. The Seacor Power could carry up to 12 crew members and 36 passengers, according to its online specifications.
The Coast Guard cutter USCGC Glenn Harris, a 154-foot rescue ship, scrambled to the scene within a half-hour of receiving the emergency beacon, joining multiple good Samaritan boat crews that also answered the call. Coast Guard photos from the scene show the Seacor Power nearly completely submerged in turbulent seas, with just one corner of the boat jutting from the water.
The Glenn Harris rescued one person from the water, while another Coast Guard crew on a 45-foot boat found another survivor. Four others were saved by good Samaritans, the Coast Guard said.
The Glenn Harris remained on scene overnight to keep searching for survivors overnight along with various Coast Guard helicopters and aircraft, said Petty Officer Jonathan Lally, a spokesman for the Coast Guard.
“Please join @FirstLadyofLA and me in praying for those who remain missing after yesterday’s capsizing off the coast of Grand Isle and for those who are working to rescue them,” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) tweeted.
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