CAPE LOOKOUT, N.C. (AP) -- Two people on a disabled sailboat off the North Carolina coast were rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter crew, while two others are being towed to shore with the boat.
The Coast Guard said its office in Norfolk, Va., received a call at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday indicating that a 52-foot sailboat called the Wing Song II was in distress. The sailboat crew reported that their vessel had suffered damage to the mast and rudder.
A helicopter crew hoisted two people from the boat about 10 hours later, while the other two stayed with the boat as it's being towed to Fort Macon. The two hoisted from the boat were taken to Elizabeth City, where the sailboat's owner met them.
The boat was located about 110 miles southeast of Cape Lookout. Weather reports from a nearby buoy showed rough seas and winds gusting above 30 mph from the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida at the time of the rescue.
The storm has brought heavy rains and high winds to eastern North Carolina for the past two days.
Thousands of residents lost electrical service. Duke Energy reported more than 11,000 customers lost service in the Charlotte area, though much of the service had been restored by late Thursday morning.
Progress Energy reported only scattered outages in the eastern part of the state.
The National Weather Service said Thursday morning that rainfall in the previous 24 hours ranged from less than an inch in Charlotte to nearly 6 inches in New Bern.
Some roads were closed across the state by flooding and downed trees. Schools in several districts in the Wilmington area were opening later than usual.
