February 14, 2015
CORTEZ, Fla. — A 63-year-old man was rescued by the Coast Guard after he fell off his 31-foot sailboat, near the Cortez Bridge on Saturday.
At approximately 12:57 p.m watchstanders from Coast Guard Station Cortez were notified by a good Samaritan reporting that a man had fallen off of a sailboat. The man was not wearing a life jacket.
A crew aboard a 29-foot Response Boat-Small II from the station was launched. The crew arrived on scene at approximately 1:03 p.m., pulled the man out of the water and transferred him to Manatee County, Florida, EMS for medical assistance.
"We are thankful someone was there to witness the incident," said Petty Officer 1st Class Sevn Castillo, officer of the day at the station. "With the recent cold weather, hypothermia can set in very quickly. Since the man was not wearing a life jacket, the incident could have gone from bad to worse in a short amount of time."