Information

Association for Rescue at Sea (AFRAS) Mission Statement

 “The mission of the Association for Rescue at Sea is to provide worldwide support and assistance to volunteer maritime rescue services and to recognize and honor extraordinary maritime rescues.”

AFRAS formally sponsors eight maritime rescue awards, six of which – the VADM Thomas Sargent III Gold Medal Award, the AFRAS Silver Medal, the Amver Award (Automated mutual assistance vessel rescue system) the Cruise Ship Humanitarian Assistance Award and the Geoff Pagels SAR Professionals of the Year Awards – are awarded at our annual ceremony on Capitol Hill with the U.S. Coast Guard Commandant and/or Vice Commandant in attendance, in addition to many Members of Congress.

The C-PORT (Conference of Professional Operators for Response Towing) Award recipient is recognized at their industry’s annual conference, and recognition of the CAR/SAR (Caribbean Search and Rescue Award) recipient has been handled via diplomatic channels. Details of each award can be found under the Awards tab.

In addition to our annual awards, AFRAS has recognized other significant rescues including the US Naval Reserve Unit, Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD for rescue of capsized water taxi in April, 2004; Carnival Cruise Liner “Holiday” for rescue of five Mexican fishermen in August, 2004; Cruise ship “Grand Princess” for rescue of two after getting underway from Galveston in April, 2006; Annapolis Fire Department for rescue of a woman from a capsized sailboat at night in July, 2008; and, the NY Waterway for the rescue of passengers from US AIR flight 1549 in NYC in January, 2009.