SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine — The U.S. Coast Guard said it's investigating a string of hoax distress calls originating from the area of Southwest Harbor. From Oct. 11-14, multiple mayday calls were made.
Lieutenant Junior Grade Matthew Bartnick from the Coast Guard’s command center in South Portland told NEWS CENTER Maine, as it does with every call for help, the Coast Guard launched search and rescue teams. No boat in distress was ever found.
"Through experience, training, and our policy, we were able to determine this was not an actual search and rescue case anymore," Bartnick said.
He said the hoax calls were believed to be coming from a young individual based on the voice heard over the radio, mimicking real distress signals with repeated calls of "mayday, mayday, mayday."
Bartnick said these incidents have wasted valuable taxpayer dollars as the Coast Guard scrambles for resources.
This isn't the first time Maine has faced similar false alarms. A hoax call was also made in Maine this past June.
Bartnick emphasized the impact these fake calls can have.
"Throughout the coast of Maine, our Coast Guard stations have typically one to two crews ready to go at all times," he said. "It puts a large strain on our resource allocation and makes it dangerous for other mariners on the water."
The Coast Guard asks the public for help identifying the person behind these hoax calls. Anyone who recognizes the voice from the most recent hoax is urged to contact the Northern Region of the Coast Guard Investigative Service at (617) 557-9091.
Making false distress calls is illegal. The Coast Guard warns that such actions can result in severe consequences, including prison time and hefty fines.
In 2015, a man from Maine was sentenced to one year in prison for making false distress calls to the Coast Guard. He also had to pay $15,000 to cover the Coast Guard's search costs.