I was out on Rhode Island Sound Thursday afternoon and got a Coast Guard severe thunderstorm warning on 16. Saw it coming on my Windy app. We experienced about 30 minutes of heavy rain, lightening, and winds 45-50 kts. No potential hail or tornado's thank God. Not fun but it wasn't long enough to create a dangerous sea state. There was another AIS sailboat on a similar course that was visible the whole time. There was a power boat somewhat visible for a few moments passing by. About ten minutes later I got a distress call on the VHF radio. First time ever. I ran below and couldn't read the radio screen (coordinates) and didn't have glasses anywhere close by. Honestly, I didn't know how to answer it. I was also nervous and didn't want to leave the helm for too long. The distress alarm stopped in under a minute. I have no idea who originated it. Today I searched this site and the internet on how to answer a distress alert. I attached it here. I'm curious about any of your experiences and how you might have reacted?
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