Blogs

Cops: 3 injured as boat hits Moriches bulkhead 12/4/13 – Moriches, NY
Three fishermen received minor injuries when their fishing boat struck a bulkhead near a Moriches residence, Suffolk County police said. A 31-foot Contender twin-engine motorboat with a center console ran up on a private dock near Crystal Beach Boulevard about 5:35 a.m. yesterday, throwing one of the three fishermen aboard into the water, the Center Moriches fire chief said. One fisherman had what appeared to be a minor back injury and was taken to Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center in East Patchogue, a police spokeswoman said. He was described as alert and responsive at the crash site, the spokeswoman said. A second man also went to the hospital with minor injuries; the third refused medical attention, police said. Authorities had not identified the men. Chief Ron Primus of the Center Moriches Fire Department said the men were coming from Poospatuck Indian Reservation in Mastic, which is across the inlet and north of where the accident occurred. He said that in the low light, the men had likely misnavigated. Two men remained onboard when firefighters arrived, Primus said, and one had been thrown but made his way to land. The owners of the dock were not available to comment, but neighbors said the sound of the crash was loud enough to wake them up, even five to six houses down the street. "There was this bang, and I had no idea what had happened -- but then the emergency vehicles started to show up and they brought out a guy on a stretcher," said Thom Traynor, 64, who lives three houses away from where the crash happened. The accident remains under investigation. Read full story here.
 
US Coast Guard rescues 2 men after sailboat sinks off Elliott Key 12-6-13 – Elliot Key, FL
Two people are safe after the U.S. Coast Guard rescued them from the water after their boat sank. A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Station Miami saw two flares off Elliot Key Thursday night. They arrived at the scene about 10 minutes later and found one person in the water and the other clinging to the mast of a sunken sailboat. A Coast Guard rescue swimmer was lowered into the water and rescued both men. Co-pilot Lt. Chris Branning says the men had flares, a VHF-radio, flashlights and were wearing life-jackets, which made the rescue much easier in pitch black conditions. The men were taken to the Coast Guard station where they received medical attention. No further details were immediately available.
Read full story here.
 
Drowning man rescued 12-03-13 – Clearlake, CA
A man was rescued from Clear Lake on Sunday after his small aluminum boat reportedly tipped over, dumping him into the water.
Clearlake Police Officer Elvis Cook and Officer Travis Parson were dispatched to the 12400 block of Lakeshore Drive to assist the Lake County Sheriff's Office for a person yelling for help who was possibly in the lake, according to Sgt. Dominic Ramirez.
A Lake County Sheriff's Office boat unit was also dispatched to the area and was responding from Lakeport. When the officers arrived they heard a man yelling for help. Ronald Bell, 55, of Clearlake was found approximately 150 yards offshore. Bell was yelling to the officers he was tired, cold and cramping and said he was going to drown. Officers Cook and Parson commandeered a small aluminum boat from a nearby resident in order to provide a rescue. The officers rowed the boat out to Bell and pulled him into it. The officers rowed back to shore where Lakeshore Fire Rescue provided medical aid. Bell was in stable condition and was treated for precautionary reasons. Read full story here.
 
Rescuers Find Stranded Boater after Massive Night Search 12-5-13 – Bayville, NY
Teams of emergency responders made a difficult night rescue of a boater Wednesday whose vessel was discovered dead in the water in Long Island Sound off Bayville. Wednesday night's dramatic rescue required an emergency response from the Oyster Bay Bay Constables. A crew scrambled to their boat and raced to the scene to help the stranded man. The incident began shortly after 8 p.m. Wednesday when a father contacted police to say his son was out boating earlier and had not returned home. The father told police that it was unusual for his son to not report in. Oyster Bay firefighters and Nassau County Police responded in force to the foot of Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park and launched a rescue boat to inspect the boat's mooring, law enforcement officials said. When the boat wasn't there, a Nassau Police helicopter was launched to search the waters around Oyster Bay, flying northward over Long Island Sound. It was there that police spotted the vessel, dead in the water. But rescuing the boater was another matter. Nassau's patrol boat was stationed on the South Shore an hour away by water to respond, law enforcement officials said. A Coast Guard vessel was dispatched from New Haven, Conn. Meanwhile, Oyster Bay firefighters requested help from the Bay Constables, who are not routinely on duty during the winter months. Three of them responded from their homes, fired up their patrol rescue and made way to the stranded boater, sources told Patch. The constables found the young man, cold but unhurt, and towed his boat back to Oyster Bay. The young man had run out of gas, authorities told Patch. Law enforcement officials say the incident points to a much larger issue: "With patrols cut at the federal, state and county level, it's not a matter of if, but when someone will lose their life due to the lack of maritime response," said one law enforcement official, who asked not to be identified. "The towns need to come to terms and get on the ball with this." Wednesday's rescue is only the recent incident on nearby waterways that have raised deep concerns in the boating community. In August, Nassau County Police found themselves all alone on Long Island Sound confronting a man armed with a rifle. Audio tapes of the incident obtained by Patch reveal that the U.S. Coast Guard did not immediately respond to Nassau Marine Unit 20's call for backup and, at one point, appeared confused by Nassau's request for assistance. See that story complete story and hear the audio tapes of that incident here. Read full story here.
 
Coast Guard rescues Tomales Bay kayaker 12-3-13 – Tomales Bay, CA
A 24-year-old kayaker was rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter crew Monday after becoming ill during an outing on Tomales Bay. Marin County fire personnel rushed the man to Kaiser Permanente Hospital in San Rafael for treatment of stomach pain and hypothermia. The incident occurred about 11:30 a.m. after the man began suffering from stomach distress and dehydration while kayaking with three acquaintances, according to Coast Guard spokeswoman Loumania Stewart. The kayakers, assisted by National Park Service personnel, made it to a remote shoreline area where the helicopter hoisted the ailing kayaker aloft, flying to Miller Point Boat Launch where the county crew picked him up. Stewart advised kayakers and others on the bay to wear life jackets, take a marine radio along, and file a "float plan" with a friend or family member -- and to check a weather report before departing. Read full story here.
 
Springfield man killed in boating accident 12-6-13 – Springfield, LA
Louisiana wildlife agents are investigating a boating accident that claimed the life of a 68-year-old Springfield man. Agents say the accident happened Thursday on the Blood River east of Springfield in Livingston parish. Officials say Emil J. Durbin's 16 foot board struck a tree, ejecting him into the water. Read full story here.  
 
Boater dies after rescue 12-2-13 – Honeymoon Island, FL
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation officers were called to the scene after two people were found along the shoreline on Honeymoon Island.
They say their vessel sank three to five miles offshore and they swam to shore.
They were suffering from hypothermia and transported to the hospital.
One of them, identified by Florida Fish & Wildlife as Stephen Chadwick, later died.
Read full story here.