Coast Guard members from Station St. Petersburg transport three rescued boaters to the station Saturday, June 23, 2018. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Coast Guard and good Samaritans rescued three boaters Saturday after their vessel capsized 12 miles west of Tampa.
Rescued were Raul Gutierrez, 40, Jorge Gutierrez, 51, and Jose Gari, 38. All three men are from Kissimmee.
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg were notified at 8:21 a.m. via Vessel Traffic Services who relayed a report from a commercial tug boat crewmember who stated boaters were capsized in Tampa Bay.
Sector watchstanders issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast and diverted a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium (RBM) boatcrew from Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg to assist.
At 8:35 a.m., good Samaritans responded to the UMIB, located the capsized 20-foot boat and pulled the three people from the water. The RBM boatcrew rendezvoused with the good Samaritan crew, embarked the three boaters and transported them to Station St. Petersburg.
No injuries were reported.
“You can never underestimate the importance of our boating community,” said Petty Officer 2nd Class Kristen Bachicha, watchstander at Sector St. Petersburg. “Thanks to today’s good Samaritans and the close coordination between Sector and Station St. Petersburg we had a successful outcome.”
