Mark Zuckerberg's Yacht Did Not Hear Distress Call, Spokesperson Clarifies

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Mark Zuckerberg's Yacht Did Not Hear Distress Call, Spokesperson Clarifies

44 minutes ago

News sources:

INDIATIMES

CBSNEWS

ALJAZEERA

Mark Zuckerberg's Yacht Did Not Hear Distress Call, Spokesperson Clarifies

Credited from: CBSNEWS

Mark Zuckerberg's yacht did not respond to a distress call from a stranded small cruise ship.
The yacht crew was reportedly on a different radio channel from the Coast Guard's distress call.
Assistance was provided by the cruise ship Wilderness Legacy instead.

Mark Zuckerberg's $390 million yacht, Launchpad, did not respond to a small skiff's distress call in Alaska due to the crew operating on a different radio channel, according to a spokesperson for the Meta CEO. The incident occurred on August 3 when the 21-foot skiff ran out of fuel between Petersburg and Juneau. Although the Wilderness Legacy, a nearby cruise ship, rendered assistance, the yacht was closer but did not answer the call, generating backlash online, according to Indiatimes and CBS News.

The Coast Guard confirmed that by the time Zuckerberg's yacht's crew became aware of the situation, help had already been dispatched. A spokesperson emphasized that neither Zuckerberg nor his family was aboard the yacht during this incident, adding, "the assist was already underway," according to Al Jazeera and CBS News.

Furthermore, the Coast Guard initially assessed that the skiff was not in distress, as confirmed by Zuckerberg's representative. Michael Love, a passenger on the Wilderness Legacy, publicly criticized the yacht's lack of response, reporting that there was "near-unanimous booing" among passengers when the captain detailed the situation, according to Al Jazeera and Indiatimes.