Both the Canadian and the U.S. Coast Guard are very concerned about a huge uptick in the number of fake distress calls so far this year.
False distress calls are categorized in two ways: accidental calls and hoax calls.
"If you unintentionally make a mayday or a distress call... or a child was doing that, we ask that you call us as soon as possible so that we can call off that type of search," says U.S. Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Bobby Nash. "A hoax call is someone who does that intentionally. They're sending up a false flag knowing that Coast Guard search and rescue crews or other agencies will be going out there searching for no one who is in distress."
There have been 160 false distress calls to date this year across the Great Lakes compared to 55 during the same period last year, and Nash says it is expensive. Launching a Coast Guard response boat can cost $4,500 U.S. an hour. Involving a Coast Guard helicopter in a search could run as high as $16,000 an hour. The average hoax mayday can sometimes last three hours.
American Coast Guard officials have released audio of two such calls.
The first is a child who broadcasts "Anyone there? Please. Tell us. We're stuck in this [inaudible]. We're all tired. We're all hungry. Please come back."
The second call is from a man. "Mayday. Mayday. We've got a plane going down. Mayday. Mayday."
In addition to the cost, Nash says such calls can tie up resources needed in the event of a real emergency.
The penalty for making a hoax call is up to six years in prison, a $250,000 fine, $5,000 civil penalty and possible reimbursement to the Coast Guard.
Earlier this year, a Chicago man was sentenced to six months in prison, three years probation, and was ordered to pay $28,181 for two false calls about a body in the Chicago River in 2014.