Mark Zuckerberg is under scrutiny following reports that his yacht’s crew failed to respond to a distress call from another vessel off the coast of Alaska last week. The Alaska Beacon disclosed that a small skiff, which had run out of fuel, requested assistance on Aug. 3 via the U.S. Coast Guard. The nearby small cruise ship, the Wilderness Legacy, came to the skiff’s aid and towed it to Farragut Bay in southeast Alaska.
According to maritime law expert Ian Ralby, all ships are obliged to assist in response to distress calls unless it poses a risk to their own safety. Ralby emphasized the importance of protecting lives at sea due to the inherent dangers involved.
Despite being closer to the incident, Zuckerberg’s yacht, named Launchpad, did not provide assistance. A spokesperson for Zuckerberg explained to the Alaska Beacon that the crew was unaware of the distress call at the time and that another nearby ship had already intervened by the time they became aware.
The spokesperson clarified that the Coast Guard confirmed the skiff was not in distress, and once the crew received the message on a different radio channel, the assistance was already in progress. The spokesperson also mentioned that Zuckerberg and his family were not present on the yacht during the incident.