A runaway boat near St. Pete Beach in Florida caused some havoc as a boat from the local sheriff’s office rescued the driver from the water while officers in a helicopter overhead urged swimmers to head for shore. You can see all the action in the sheriff’s video below.
The rescue started when the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office got a call that the driver had been thrown from his boat about half a mile off Pass-a-Grille Beach, just south of St. Pete. The sheriff’s office then launched a boat and a helicopter to the scene.
They found the driver treading water, while the boat was carving donuts, threatening to run into the driver as well as swimmers and snorkelers nearby. One of the deputies on the helicopter told officers on the beach to get everyone out of the water.
Meanwhile, deputies on the sheriff’s boat threw the driver a line and pulled him on board. Then they chased his runaway boat, eventually matching its speed. Running next to it, they managed to put a deputy on board. He got the boat under control and drove it back to land.
No one was injured in the incident. It was not clear why the man fell off his boat. He was not wearing a life jacket.
The sheriff’s office posted a note on Facebook saying that “Utilizing their training, marine deputies were able to match the speed of the runaway vessel, board it, and regain control.” The posting also urged people “if you’re operating a vessel, remember to wear your life jacket and utilize an engine cut-off switch or kill cord.” See the video below:
