Coast Guard Rescues 2 Boaters From Capsized Sailboat

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The Coast Guard rescued two boaters from a capsized sailboat Monday in the St. Martin River near Ocean City.

A good Samaritan noticed an overturned sailboat and called Coast Guard Station Ocean City watchstanders at approximately 12:30 p.m. to make a report.

A boat crew aboard a 24-foot Special Purpose Craft was launched and arrived on scene within approximately 15 minutes of the notification.

"When we first got close enough to see the sailboat, we noticed the mast raising and falling in and out of the water," said Petty Officer 1st Class William King, the coxswain aboard the SPC. "We saw one boater trying to right the boat, but each time he tried the sail would catch the wind causing the hull to come back down on him."

The crew first rescued one boater who had drifted from the boat and then returned to pull the second off the sailboat.

"It was a good thing for both the boaters that we were able to respond as quickly as we did," King said in a news release. "The environmental conditions were a bit beyond the capability of the boaters, putting them in harm's way. When we arrived on scene,  we noticed the second boater had drifted approximately 25 yards from the overturned boat. The best decision the boaters made was to wear their life jackets. Accidents such as this one happen in a split second, rarely giving boaters the time to don their life jackets. If during an accident a boater is knocked unconscious, or like in this case is separated from their boat, a life jacket greatly increases their risk of survival."

The Coast Guard crew took both boaters to the Ocean Pines Marina where Ocean City Fire Department checked them for injuries, but no injuries were reported.

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