|
Coast Guard: Life jackets, radio saved capsized boaters
Posted: 09.17.2010 at 12:16 PM
|
PULASKI -- It looks like life jackets and a radio may have saved three people whose boat capsized this morning in Pulaski.
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued the three when their 19-foot vessel capsized near the mouth of the Salmon River around 9:15am. The boaters made a distress call around 8:25am, alerting crews to what happened. They were all taken to the hospital with signs of hypothermia.
Investigators say all three were wearing life jackets when their boat flipped over. The boat's owner used a handheld waterproof radio to call for help.
"What saved their lives today were their life jackets and radio," said Petty Officer 1st Class Jadon Sprague, executive petty officer at Station Oswego. "If they didn't have their life jackets on and a radio to call us, who knows what could have happened?"
The Coast Guard recommends anyone on the water wear a life jacket at all times and they recommend mariners carry in a VHF-FM marine-band radio. The channel is monitored by the Coast Guard and state marine patrols around the clock.