CHATHAM – The first of two 45-foot Coast Guard rescue vessels has been delivered, and the second vessel could be arriving this summer. But town officials are not giving up on their efforts to convince the agency to reverse course and keep a surf-ready vessel and trained crew in town to handle rescues on the notoriously shallow and dangerous sandbars that impede entry to the town’s Atlantic port.
On Tuesday, Chatham Select Board members agreed to go forward with a campaign seeking the support of other Cape towns in pushing the region’s congressional delegation to advocate for Coast Guard Station Chatham to retain its designation as a surf station, with a vessel and crew capable of operating in large breaking seas on both of the town’s Atlantic inlets.