Canadian Forces Member Missing from HMCS Winnipeg
A crew member onboard the HMCS Winnipeg has gone missing.
Master Sailor Duane Earle, a Boatswain, from Winnipeg, Manitoba, is believed to have accidentally fallen overboard very early on December 14, while the ship was approximately 500 nautical miles west of San Francisco, California, en route back to Esquimalt after being deployed to the Asia-Pacific region on Operations PROJECTION and NEON.
MS Earle was not identified as missing until later in the day, at which point, HMCS Winnipeg turned back along its route and commenced a search, along with its embarked CH-148 Cyclone helicopter.
The search effort is being coordinated by the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) in Alameda County, California and includes Royal Canadian Air Force and the United States Coast Guard assets.
MS Earle’s next of kin have been notified and the CAF is providing his family with the support needed to help them through this difficult time.
The CAF will conduct an investigation into the circumstances of how the member went missing.
HMCS Winnipeg is a Halifax-class frigate that has served in the Royal Canadian Navy since 1996. Winnipeg is the ninth ship in her class, whose design emerged from the Canadian Patrol Frigate Project.