The U.S. Coast Guard Tuesday morning rescued a man involved in a boating accident in Long Island Sound.
Here’s what happened, according to Coast Guard spokesman Mazin Rodion:
The man and a friend had been in an inflatable dinghy Monday fishing near Silver Sands beach. The current got swift in the high winds.
The friend jumped into the water and swam safely to Charles Island, where he was stranded overnight.
The other man remained in the inflatable boat. He drifted overnight to within four or five miles of Port Jefferson, Long Island.
A “Good Samaritan” there Monday morning found the man waving a red flag. The Good Smaritan happened to be a member of the Coast Guard Auxilliary. He called the Coast Guard, which came and rescued the man.
The rescued man was brought to the Woodward Avenue Coast Guard station, where Fire Department medics attended to him. He was then taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital. He was treated for hypothermia and dehydration.
Meanwhile, the Coast Guard contacted Milford police, who just then came upon the friend walking ashore from Charles Island after having spent the night there. (You can walk that route during low tide.) He too was taken to the hospital for observation. Both men are expected to be fine.
