Dec 8, 2012 5:34 PM
UPDATE, 5:25 p.m.
The two people rescued were hunters who became disoriented as fog rolled in, but they have survived and will be fine, Capt. Brenner said at about 3:30 p.m.
The pair had gone out onto some flats in the bay opposite Road D but lost their bearings in the fog, panicked and started screaming for help, he said. A bystander called 911. Their identities were not available, but the captain said they were both male.
Both were conscious and still standing when reached by rescuers, but the one taken aboard by Southampton Fire Department’s water rescue team lost consciousness upon rescue and regained it later on shore.
In addition to the fire department and the U.S. Coast Guard, the North Sea Fire Department also sent a boat.
“What a great Christmas story,” Capt. Brenner. “You always hear of bad things happening this time of year.”
ORIGINAL STORY:
Two people whose condition is unknown were pulled from Shinnecock Bay on Saturday afternoon in a “major water rescue,” according to Southampton Fire Department Captain Chris Brenner.
The Southampton Fire Department water rescue team and the U.S. Coast Guard were called out sometime around 12:30 p.m. to a report of “screams heard in the fog,” on the opposite side of the bay from Road D, the captain said. Upon arrival, they could hear the victims but not see them, he said.
One victim was recovered by the fire department, while the other was recovered by the Coast Guard. They were transported to Coast Guard Station Shinnecock in Hampton Bays to await an ambulance to the hospital, the captain said.
Additional details on the victims was not immediately available.
It was also not immediately clear why the pair had been in the water. They could have been swimming, clamming or boating, the captain said.
Always carry a compass.
Fortunately, a Darwin Award was not granted.
A sad situation was averted
two lives that were at risk were saved
the responders did their usual outstanding job. (don't take them for granted folks)
What more is there to say?
Merry Christmas folks.
I suppose you have never complained about how the town or county government functions or questioned how tax money is spent. I doubt it. You know what I think? I think u need to toughen up and get off your high horse.
And if I seem to be taking this personnally, yes I am and there is a reason for that based on a prior incident which ended well. My only point is this: Those of us who are on the water once a year or everyday, if we were to request emergency assistance , want EVERYONE with a boat to be notified and we don't care who gets there first. Safe home, Draggerman
That being said, I know that SFD called the USCG. There goes that argument. There were 2 Bay Constables on duty that day. One was in Westhampton, one in North Sea. They would have had to get to the CG dock (where their boats are for the winter)in record time to be of any help. It sounds like your beef is with the dispatchers who decided to call out SFD, not the fire department ...more who called in the USCG. The CG directed the SFD crew to take the victims to Sta. Shinnecock, not to SFD command post. Obviously, as the story states, SFD obeyed the order from the CG. The other thing to note is that if the CG felt the need to call in SHT Bay Constables, as the lead SAR agency, they could have made that call.
Sig, it's very easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, especially when you have a beef with the local volunteer fire departments (NSFD spent 250k on the boat, by the way) and feel that as a taxpayer you have a right to complain. Maybe you should attend a fire commissioners meeting, that is open to the public (Except while in executive session).
I wish you a Merry Christmas...
When there is a life or death emergency doesn't it make sense to utilize ALL available ...more resources? By the way I happen to believe that in the case of an emergency in one of our many ponds the FD's are better able to get a boat on scene because I think they all have small boats on trailers at firehouses spread throughout the town.
There were I think 4-5 drownings in this town this year, which is too many. There is enough tragedy around us- I don't want to read about someone losing his life to the sea because of a turf battle. My beef is that there are proceedures in place and they are routinely ignored (not just by the FD) and that is a recipe for disaster.
"Dear Lord be good to me, the sea is so wide and my boat is so small"
May your decks be clear and your nets full draggerman.
Bottom line is that the SFD and the USCG worked together on this call. NSFD was ready to launch at road D. Two lives were saved.
There isn't any controversy as far as I can see...
The brunt of our disagreement comes down to this: I favor an ...more all hands on deck response to an emergency using all available resources; you want your own dept to handle everything regardless of whether u have the training or equipment to complete the mission. Your capt called the media before u got back to the firehouse for crying out loud! You still haven't answered the question- why didn't the SHV PD or FD pick up the phone and call the town PD?? A ten second call? And by the way the Coast Guard did NOT call a mutual aid to FRES. SHV FD did that . Please !
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot
You bore me.
Dispatch called SFD.
SFD requested USCG
SFD requested NSFD to respond with a 20' RHIB to the scene
SFD boat was launched, responded to the scene
USCG small boat was underway.
SFD located 2 Victims within 10 minutes of the initial call
SFD gave USCG small boat the coordinates to rescue 2nd victim
SFD ...more and USCG took victims to waiting ambulances at Sta Shinnecock
2 lives were saved.
How you are finding controversy in this boggles my mind. You really need a hobby.
All Im saying is if my dragger sprung a leak 12 miles out I wouldn't care who got there first as I floundered in the drink, but I'd sure as halibut want everyone with a boat or helicopter out there looking for me. Not a good time for surf and turf battles
http://www.27east.com/news/article.cfm/Flanders/204700/Two-teenage-girls-are-rescued-in-Flanders-Bay
Any delay in dispatching ANY asset to assist in a life or death situation, due to inter-agency squabbles and grudges, is never a good thing. Hopefully lessons were learned here, and the needed course corrections ...more will be made.
Peace on Earth!
[PS -- when an article intended for publication is revised for that purpose, there are then TWO versions of the same article within very similar URL links, the "print" version and the "how it unfolded" version. See the blue link at the top of this article under the headline, in order to toggle back and forth between the two versions. In the past, indented replies to commenets did not always appear in both versions. This is a site navigation problem here which could use some improvement IMO.]
what corrections?
This was a perfect rescue with 3 agencies involved. The Hunters were in boats minutes after the FD and Coast Guard were notified.
Sig is trying to start controversy were it doesn't exist...
The arrogance of the SVFD, as voiced by Draggerman obviously a member of that dept, is appaling- this rescue was not perfect, in fact there are several glaring imperfections as I have stated in prior posts- and it seems that the SVFD is not even willing to rationally discuss the ...more incident .
There is no reason to de brief this incident- the SVFD is perfect, there is no way to improve on perfection, how dare anyone question the high and mighty SVFD. Unbelievable.
The truth is this controversy that D-man accuses me of starting has been raging behind the scenes for years- ever since FD's began purchasing larger boats and began to insert themselves into the SAR business. The Coast Guard and local police marine units have held numerous mtgs with FRES where notification, response, and search parameters have been agreed on- however certain FD's refuse to follow the procedures- I have heard of incidents where FD personnel have actualy told the Coast Guard at a rescue scene that they (the FD) are in charge and for the CG to stand aside!
Imagine a coast guard truck arriving at a house fire and telling the fire dept that they were in charge. Absurd isn't it? Why not just notify every agency when there is an emergency? Seems simple to me.
I read a prior post of yours where you advised the public to call a phone number for the fire dept if they needed assistance on the water INSTEAD OF CALLING 911 !!!! Are you KIDDING me? That goes beyond arrogance. I can't believe it. I'm actually speechless. The FD's do such a good job responding to fires , car accidents, etc on land- which they are trained and equipped for- but you all are a liability when you get your feet wet. Instead of trying to take over marine SAR why can't you just mesh with the existing agencies and become part of the team ? Wouldn't that better benefit the public??