Coast Guard Helicopter Rescues Four Girls Stranded on Lake Superior Island

What was supposed to be nothing more than a fun paddleboarding adventure on Lake Superior quickly turned into a nightmare for four sisters.

The girls, ages 8 to 14, somehow lost their paddles and ended up stranded on a small rocky island.

By 8 p.m., their parents were freaking out and called 911 after realizing the girls couldn’t get back on their own. According to MLive, Deputies tried to reach them by boat, but the water was too rough, which made it pretty much impossible.

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The girls weren’t far from a nearby larger island, so rescuers set up a rope relay to get food and blankets to them since they were only in swimsuits and starting to get cold.

Who Rescued the Stranded Girls on Lake Superior?

That’s when the U.S. Coast Guard stepped in. A Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Traverse City flew in around 1 a.m. and used a rescue basket to airlift all four girls to safety. They were taken to a landing zone where EMS and their stressed-out parents were waiting.

Who Was Involved in the Dramatic Lake Superior Rescue?

One crew member, Petty Officer 3rd Class Lorenzo Giambanco, was on his first-ever Great Lakes rescue. Definitely a wild night that he will never forget.

While the rescue was carried out by the crew from Air Station Traverse City, the girls were actually stranded on a small island near Black Beach along the Minnesota shore of Lake Superior.