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ROCKLAND, Maine (AP) -- The main mast of a historic excursion vessel splintered and fell onto the deck Monday, killing one person and injuring three others aboard the schooner Grace Bailey off the coast of Maine, officials said.
A nearby Coast Guard vessel began evacuating the injured passengers within minutes of the mast's catastrophic failure and collapse on the deck, which occurred while the schooner was returning from a four-day cruise, the vessel's owner said in a statement. Thirty-three people were on board the schooner, which was about 1 mile east of the Rockland harbor, the Coast Guard said.
One person died from injuries and three people were transported to hospitals Monday, the Rockland Fire Department said. A helicopter transported one of the injured, while the other two were transported to a local hospital, fire officials said.
Charlie Weidman, owner of Charlie's Marine Service, was first on the scene at 10:26 a.m., shortly after the initial mayday, to find CPR was already being performed on one victim. Another victim had a head injury and two others had crush and spinal injuries, said Weidman, a trained emergency medical technician who pulled alongside and went aboard to assist.
"It is an unforeseen circumstance," Weidman said Monday afternoon. "No one trains to have a giant mast break on a schooner. Everyone acted with professionalism. Everyone was doing the best they could with the gifts that they had."