Accidents of the Week - March 8, 2025
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Coast Guard Rescues Boaters 9 Hours After Capsizing
2/23/25 – Captiva, FL
Coast Guard crews rescued three boaters off Florida’s Captiva Island, after their boat flipped and they were stuck at sea for nine hours. A family member reported concerns at 1 a.m. on 23 February, after not hearing from the boaters for five hours.
A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater helicopter crew found the boaters sitting on the top of the capsized boat about 6 a.m., and a boat crew with the Coast Guard in Fort Myers Beach rescued them and sent them for emergency medical evaluation at HealthPark Medical Center in Fort Myers.
The boaters reported no health issues from being stuck at sea, according to a Coast Guard press release. It's unknown why the boat flipped.
Search Suspended for Missing Man Off Staten Island
2/23/25 – Breezy Point, NY
Investigators suspended their search on 24 February for a man who went missing after a boat capsized and sank off New York’s Staten Island during a sunny but chilly afternoon the previous day, with at least three others losing their lives.
Five people were pulled from the water when the U.S. Coast Guard, Fire Department of New York (FDNY), and New York Police Department (NYPD) responded to a distress call about 5 miles southeast of Breezy Point, a neighborhood at the tip of Queens' Rockaway Peninsula, in the Ambrose Channel around 12 p.m. on 23 February, authorities said.
Four of the people pulled from the water were unconscious. Three of them died and two others were taken to a hospital in critical condition. One person remained in critical condition on 24 February, a hospital official said, while the other had improved.
Crews had been looking for a sixth person who was still unaccounted for, officials said. He was later identified by the Coast Guard as Vernon Glasford, 52, last seen wearing a gray hoody, blue jeans and black boots. The Coast Guard suspended its search for Glasford around 6 p.m.
Dragon Boat Team Rescues Capsized Kayaker
2/22/25 - Morro Bay, CA
The Central Coast SurviveOars, a dragon boat racing team made up of cancer survivors in Morro Bay, California, rescued a man after his kayak overturned on 22 February.
It was during their weekly practice when a SurviveOars paddler spotted something in the distance south of the boat launch ramp. “She noticed way off into the distance that it looked like someone had capsized. We had to paddle pretty far to reach this gentleman,” said Shannon Larrabee, paddler.
“We used our training and made the call to help him out. He would have been in trouble,” Larrabee added. Once they got closer, they noticed he had capsized. “It looked like he had been in the water for a while by the time we showed up. We saw he was in distress,” Larrabee said.
“The current was quite strong that morning. A lot of people underestimate the current in the harbor because it looks so peaceful,” said Debi Thoresen, paddler. Larrabee says they tossed the kayaker a rope and, while paddling him back to the nearest dock, contacted the Harbor Patrol.
Mylar Blanket ‘Saved the Day’
“His PFD (personal flotation device) was not tight enough, so when he did fall in, it went way up high and he was not safe,” Thoresen added.
Just a few days before, the team had purchased an emergency blanket for the boat. They say it saved the day. “We quickly removed his upper clothes and put a Mylar blanket around him. I touched him and he felt so cold to me that I wrapped my body around him. He was definitely in hypothermia. It was quite frightening,” Thoresen said.
The SurviveOars credited their regular safety trainings for knowing what to do. “We worked together and we’re proud that we’re able to help somebody in need and put that to use,” Larrabee said.
Two Women Found Dead In New Jersey Boat Fire
2/21/25 – Newark, NJ
Two women were found dead in a boat that caught fire on dry land in Newark, New Jersey, on the night of 21 February, authorities said.
Details of what happened remained unclear the following day, but the boat was parked in an alleyway at Pennsy Place, Newark, according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office. The victims were pronounced dead at University Hospital in Newark. No other information about them was released.
One male was injured and taken to Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, where he was in stable condition, officials said.
Woman, Child Injured in Raging Boat Fire
2/22/25 – New Rochelle, NY
Seven boats were destroyed in the early hours of 22 February and a mother and child on one of the boats were injured, when a fire spread through a marina in New Rochelle, New York, fire officials said.
The burning boats and resulting fuel spill forced the closure of the channel at Davenport Neck, which was blocked by a drifting boat. Firefighters responded to Imperial Yacht Club around 12:45 a.m. to find multiple boats on fire.
Fire boats were requested, with assistance provided by the New Rochelle police Harbor Unit and the Port Washington (Long Island) Marine Unit, coordinated by the New Rochelle Harbormaster.
Once first responders arrived, they learned that a woman and child were in a car after getting off one of the boats that was on fire. The two had suffered smoke inhalation and were treated by firefighters at the scene before being taken to Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx.
Eyewitness Ralph Rios told local reporters that he was sleeping on his boat when a loud explosion woke him up. "It blasted. Sounded like lightning hit, and I didn't know," he said. "I was really shook because there's always people in that boat. Luckily, they were in Florida. I don't know if the girl and the baby were in that boat (or) the next boat," he said.
Firefighters Fought to Contain Blaze
Fire Chief Andrew Sandor said the main focus for firefighters was containing the radiant heat that allowed the fire to spread to multiple boats. “It took about two hours for the fires to be contained, although several had their moorings burned away and drifted into the channel. "
“There were some million-dollar boats there lined up pretty close to each other, and our guys did a good job to keep the fire away from as many boats as they could," Sandor said.
The channel was closed as the Harbormaster, U.S. Coast Guard, and New York state Department of Environmental Conservation worked to contain the fuel spill and deal with the salvage of the wrecked boats. The cause of the fire was under investigation.
Lone Survivor Rescued After Boat Runs Aground
2/21/25 – Santa Barbara, CA
The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach mounted a successful rescue operation after receiving a report concerning a vessel that ran aground off Anacapa Island, in California’s Santa Barbara Channel.
The incident was reported at approximately 4:22 p.m. on 21 February, prompting a swift response from a boat crew stationed at STA Channel Islands. Upon arrival at the scene, the team found one person stranded but safe on the rocky shores of Anacapa Island. The survivor was quickly brought aboard the Coast Guard craft.
Wrecked Sailboat Spills 5 Gallons of Fuel
Further investigation revealed that the vessel, named “Rainbow End,” had been destroyed. The following day, partner agencies joined forces to coordinate the recovery of the vessel’s debris.
Despite efforts to contain and manage the situation, an estimated five gallons of fuel were lost to the sea, raising environmental concerns. The Coast Guard along with multiple federal and state agencies swiftly initiated a cleanup operation to mitigate the impact of the spill.
Adding to the ongoing efforts, the National Park Service took the lead on investigating the cause of the maritime mishap.
The importance of this multifaceted approach was underscored by the U.S. Coast Guard, with every agency playing a crucial role in the response and recovery operations.
Body of Missing Boater Recovered from Louisiana Canal
2/24/25 – Lower St. Martin Parish, LA
After days of searching, rescue crews recovered the body of a missing man from Pierre Part, Louisiana, whose boat was found crashed.
Officials identified the man as Seth A. Falcon, 38, of Pierre Part. According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office recovered Falcon’s body from the Banister Canal around 9 a.m. on 28 February. He was reportedly not wearing a personal floatation device when recovered.
The search for Falcon began on the morning of 25 February, after agents say they were notified by a commercial fisherman about an unmanned 18-foot aluminum vessel with a tiller steer motor.
Boat Hit Pylon: Investigators
Based on evidence found at the scene, agents said they believed the boat had hit a pylon, which ejected Falcon, the operator, into the water. Officials said, according to the operator’s last known contact, he left to go fishing with his dog around 3 p.m. on 24 February and never returned.
The boat operator’s dog was found on a platform near the boating incident and returned to his family, officials added.
All Occupants Found After Boat Capsizes in River
2/23/25 – Hinds Co., MS
Authorities rescued five people after a fishing boat capsized in the Pearl River, in Mississippi.
Sheriff Tyree Jones of Hinds County, Mississippi, said all of the fishing boat’s occupants, three males and two females, were in stable condition. The incident took place on the afternoon of 23 February.
Rescue efforts took place with the participation of the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office, Rankin County, Hinds County EOC, Terry Volunteers, and Good Samaritan citizens.
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