Police Officers Help Save 5 From Wareham Boat Crash

WAREHAM, MA – Two Wareham police officers are being celebrated for helping to save five people following a boat crash Monday night. Officers James White and Blaise Lalli responded to 261 Great Neck Rd. around 8 p.m. for a report of a loud crash and people yelling for help, according to a Wareham police statement.

The officers heard multiple people screaming for help on the Cape Cod Canal side of Stony Point Dike, and spotted two of the stranded boaters in the water. White jumped in the water with a life jacket and throw ring and was able to bring them to shore, while Lalli went further down the dike and found three more people clinging to a channel marker buoy, police said.

Lalli relayed their location to a Wareham Department of Natural Resources boat, allowing Harbormaster Garry Buckminster and Lt. Justin Harrington of the Onset Fire Department to find and rescue the remaining three boaters.

"Officer James White risked his life tonight by jumping in the ocean without hesitation, saving two lives," Acting Police Chief John Walcek said in a statement. "The individuals in distress were over a 120 feet from shore, coupled with the strong canal current, and darkness made the rescue of these two people miraculous. I am extremely proud of his bravery under adverse conditions."

There were minor injuries among the five boaters, police said. Investigators believe the boat, owned by Mattapoisett resident Andrew Murray, struck a buoy marker and threw the five people on board into the water. Murray was among the three people rescued from the buoy.

The crash is under investigation by the Massachusetts Environmental Police.

"Officer Lalli was prepared to enter the water where the other cries for help were coming from until it was realized that they were clinging to buoy. The cooperation and coordination between the multiple agencies involved, made this night end without any loss of life," Walcek said in a statement. "Wareham is indeed lucky to have such dedicated public servants. Furthermore, it should be added that these rescues would not have happened if it was not for the concerned residents who called 911 and began checking the area."

Image via Wareham Police Department