As Hurricane Sandy approached, the crew of the Bounty was forced to abandon ship

Oct 29, 2012 14:33 GMT  ·  By

The HMS Bounty was abandoned by 17 crew members off the coast of North Carolina, this morning, after taking water on board.

According to NBC News, the distress signal was sent late last night, as the Bounty started taking on water. A Coast Guard helicopter was sent out to perform the rescue operation.

"Our helicopter has arrived on scene and the hoisting operation is under way," one Coast Guard official stated during the rescue mission.

After the initial signal was sent out to the owner of the ship, the Coast Guard lost contact with crew members. Eventually, another signal came from the radio beacon on the bounty, and the ship was located 90 miles southeast of Hatteras, North Carolina, with no working propulsion system.

As Hurricane Sandy approached, the ship was surrounded by 40 mph winds. Crew members were transported to shore in lifeboats.

"The 17 person crew donned cold water survival suits and life jackets before launching in two 25-man lifeboats with canopies," a Coast Guard spokesperson stated.

The three mast ship was then sent to Davy Jones’ Locker, NY Daily News informs. The Bounty was about to tour St. Petersburg, Florida, for the November 10-11 weekend.

The "HMS Bounty" was built in 1962, for the movie "Mutiny on the Bounty," starring Marlon Brando. It was constructed as a replica of the British Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty, aboard which a mutiny took place on April 28, 1789, in Tahiti.

Eighteen mutineers sent the ship's captain afloat, Wikipedia reports, burning the Bounty off Pitcairn Island, in Tahiti.

The 180-foot ship was also featured in the 1990 remake of "Treasure Island," in the 2004 "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie," but perhaps its most notorious appearance was as the "Edinburgh Trader," in "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest."