Siren Marine Protects Restored CG36500

Historic Lifeboat Featured in Film ‘The Finest Hours’ Monitored by Siren Marine’s
Pixie Vessel Tracking Device

Siren Marine, a world leader in vessel monitoring, tracking and control technology, announced today that its revolutionary Pixie boat monitor is being used to protect the newly restored CG36500 lifeboat featured in the Disney film The Finest Hours.

The film tells of the events of the night of February 18^th, 1952, during a raging 70-knot snowstorm, in which four Coast Guardsmen set out on the 36-foot lifeboat to rescue crewmen from the tanker Pendleton that had broken apart in the tempest. Incredibly, the lifeboat returned to the Chatham Live-Saving Station with 32 survivors – on a boat designed to carry half that number safely. All four Coast Guardsmen received the Gold Life-Saving Medal for their bravery under these almost impossible conditions.

Decommissioned in 1968, the boat was donated to the Cape Cod National Seashore for a display at their Coast Guard exhibit in Eastham, Mass. This move was never completed because of a shortage of funds for restoration. The CG36500 was left to deteriorate until the Orleans, Mass Historical Society (OHS) intervened. The vessel was eventually restored by OHS volunteers to her present mission as a floating museum dedicated to the memory of the life savers of Cape Cod. As part of the restoration, OHS installed the Siren Marine Pixie to monitor critical systems such as bilge and battery levels to guard against sinking.

“We are very proud to have our monitoring device installed on this lovingly restored hero,” said Daniel Harper, founder and CEO, Siren Marine. “Our products are designed to protect all types of boats, alerting owners when pre-configured conditions occur, such as a dead battery or water ingress. We take this responsibility very seriously and are honored to be a part of such a high profile project.”

Today the CG36500 is the only operating surviving lifeboat in its class on the East Coast and one of only a handful that still exists anywhere in the country. The CG36500 is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and can be viewed by the public at its berths in Orleans, Mass. For more information on Siren Marine, and its full line of vessel monitoring and tracking devices, please visit sirenmarine.com.