THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 22, 1995 TAG: 9507220356
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HATTERAS LENGTH: Short : 43 lines
When the state ferry to Ocracoke Island crossed the Hatteras Inlet Friday morning, its wake capsized a 14-foot aluminum fishing boat and left a trio of anglers adrift in the Atlantic.
Two of the boat's passengers swam ashore, a 25-yard trip through five-foot seas. The skipper stayed with his boat a few minutes longer, then was rescued by U.S. Coast Guardsmen as he was swimming to a nearby beach.
``I'm pretty sure it was a tough swim. The seas were already up there at least five feet in the ocean and two feet on the sound side,'' said Coast Guard Petty Officer Robert Wheat, who assisted with the rescue. ``The ferry's wake sent the waves even higher.''
Coast Guard officials at Group Cape Hatteras in Buxton received the rescue call at 11:18 a.m. Someone on the shore who heard the captain's calls for help dialed 911, Wheat said. A passing boat also radioed the Coast Guard.
Wheat said the boat had an outboard motor and had been borrowed for the day. The Coast Guard official declined to release the names of the 27-year-old skipper and his wife, who are from Hatteras Island. The other passenger was the wife's brother, who was visiting from Virginia. The group had been flounder fishing, Wheat said.
``The Nancy K, a charter boat that was nearby, picked up the aluminum boat and towed it to shore. It's in fine condition,'' Wheat said. ``But they lost everything else that was in it. Wallets, a purse, tackle, rods and reels, fish, a cooler - even keys to their vehicles - all sank to the bottom. Luckily, all three people in the boat were wearing their floatation devices.''
About a dozen Coast Guardsmen from Hatteras and Ocracoke islands assisted in the rescue. Wheat said the first two swimmers were picked up on the beach about 15 minutes after his office received the rescue call. The captain was pulled aboard a 21-foot Coast Guard rescue boat about five minutes later.
KEYWORDS: ACCIDENT BOAT by CNB