Stranded Boater Rescued Near Egmont Key

St. Petersburg, FL — The successful rescue of a stranded boater about 25 miles west of Egmont Key by the U.S. Coast Guard and a good Samaritan late Thursday night is being called out as a good example why having a “float plan” matters.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard, watchstanders from Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg received a 911 call around 8:19 p.m. Thursday from a woman concerned about her husband. The man had left the Palma Sola area of Manatee County Thursday for some offshore fishing and intended to return about 5 p.m.

Before he left home, the man provided the details of his intended whereabouts by sharing a float plan with his wife. Thanks to those details, a Jayhawk helicopter from Air Station Clearwater and a boat crew from Coast Guard Station Cortez were able to head out on the man's trail.

While the rescue effort was taking off, a good Samaritan reached out to the Coast Guard via marine radio. The fellow boater had come across the missing man and his disabled boat, the Coast Guard wrote in an email to media.

The Coast Guard was able to reach the man by about 10 p.m. Thursday. His boat was towed back to Palma Sola Friday morning.

"This is a testament to how important it is to have a float plan before you get underway," said Petty Officer 1st Class Donna Petty, a watchstander at Sector St. Petersburg's command center. "We were able to get on scene quickly to rescue him because he told his wife where he was going and when he'd be back."

For more information about who should create a float plan and what to include, visit the Coast Guard online.

Photo and video courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard/Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Timothy Black