美国破冰船驰援雪龙号 需7天抵达

The US Coast Guard was dispatching a special ice-breaking cutter to help free two ships lodged in the Antarctic, officials announced Saturday.

The Polar Star, the Coast Guard’s only active heavy polar ice breaker, was being sent to help free the Russian and Chinese vessels from thick bands of ice, officials said.

According to a Coast Guard statement, the Polar Star left its home port of Seattle in early December on one of its primary missions, Operation Deep Freeze. The mission involves breaking a channel through the sea ice of McMurdo Sound to resupply and refuel the U.S. Antarctic Program’s McMurdo Station on Ross Island.

“Our highest priority is safety of life at sea, which is why we are assisting in breaking a navigational path for both of these vessels,” said Vice Adm. Paul F. Zukunft, the Coast Guard Pacific Area commander. “We are always ready and duty-bound to render assistance in one of the most remote and harsh environments on the face of the globe.”

Zukunft said 52 scientists and tourists who had been trapped for a week aboard the Russian vessel, the Akademik Shokalskiy, had been airlifted to safety Thursday by helicopter from the second stranded ship, the Chinese vessel Xue Long, or Snow Dragon.

The scientists and tourists were taken to an Australian icebreaker called the Aurora Australis, which is expected to transport them to Tasmania in mid-January. The 22 crew members stayed with the vessel, which was not in danger of sinking and had enough supplies to last weeks.

A Chinese reporter aboard the Xue Long said Saturday that an iceberg had appeared overnight and was blocking the ship’s passage. The 101 crew members aboard the ship were described as safe and fully supplied.

The Polar Star was responding to a request from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, coordinator for the ongoing rescue operations.

The National Science Foundation manages the US Antarctic Program, which coordinates all science research and related logistics in Antarctica and on the Southern Ocean. McMurdo Station is the logistics hub for NSF’s research.

For more than 50 years, Coast Guard icebreaker crews have deployed to Antarctica in support of Operation Deep Freeze, U.S. officials said. Before being cut short to help in the rescue mission, the cutter was deployed to help create a navigable shipping lane through the layers of sea ice in McMurdo Sound and permit the delivery of critical fuel and supplies to run the U.S. McMurdo and South Pole stations throughout the coming year.据《洛杉矶时报》报道，美国海岸警卫队应澳大利亚海事安全局请求，派出“北极星号”破冰船前往救援被困南极的中俄船只。

澳大利亚海事安全局救援协调中心说，“北极星号”需要大约7天才能抵达两艘中俄船只被困的南极“联邦湾”。

获救的澳大利亚医生安德鲁5日说，获救者每个人手写的感谢信扫描后传真给了“雪龙”号船长和中国相关部门，他们希望“北极星”尽快抵达，营救中俄船只。

美国海岸警卫队太平洋区司令保罗·祖昆福特说：“海上生命安全是我们最高任务，这就是为什么我们正

协助为被困中俄船只开辟航道的原因。在这个地球上最遥远、自然环境最残酷的地方，我们随时准备施以援手。”

祖昆福特说，俄罗斯“绍卡利斯基院士号”科考船载有52名被困的科学家和游客，中国“雪龙号”破冰船上2日已通过直升机将他们转移至澳大利亚“南极光号”破冰船，预计1月中旬“南极光号”会将他们送往塔斯马尼亚岛，成功施救后的“雪龙号”随后也被厚冰所困。目前，俄科考船上还有22名船组人员坚守在船上待援，该船没有沉没危险，补给足可持续数周。

“雪龙号”上一名记者4日称，头天晚上突然出现的一座冰山阻挡了“雪龙号”的航道。该记者表示，船上101名人员都很安全，补给也十分充足。

122米的 “北极星号”是美国海岸警卫队唯一一艘重型破冰船。在接受此次救援任务前，“北极星号”的主要任务是开辟一条运输通道，为未来一年美国麦克默多站运输关键燃料和物资。麦克默多站由美国国家科学基金会（NSF）负责管理，是南极和南冰洋地区最大的后勤基地。