Posted on 03/03/2009 7:02:57 PM PST by metmom
The Coast Guard called off its search for three missing football players at sunset Tuesday.
The news came after crews combed choppy waters off the Florida Gulf Coast for a third full day since NFL players Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith and a third friend William Bleakley disappeared. Their fishing boat capsized in stormy seas Saturday evening.
One of the four on the excursion, Nick Schuyler, survived.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
sad, I wonder what was the type of boat
It is sad. This is why I would never take a 21 foot boat 50 miles offshore. If I was going 50 miles off shore I would certainly spend a few bucks on a EPIRB so the coast guard would have a chance of finding me.
The gulf can get very rough and storms come up quick.
That SUCKS> They could still be alive.
21 foot everglades. nice boat but too small for taking far offshore especially in rough weather.
They’ve been in 68 degree water since Saturday afternoon. Even if they have their lifejackets on they would be dead from hypothermia.
So you say. But I think not. They could still be alive. Why quit now. Give it a chance.
What a tragedy...Shuyler said the helicopter lights were above them that first night.
Very sad, what a blow to the families. I had hoped for a miracle.
It’s so unlikely that they are still alive. They have been in the water since Saturday.
I can’t imagine going out on the water without checking the forecast and radar first.
But that’s just the meteorologist in me. I don’t go to the store without doing that.
That makes it even worse. They all could have been rescued then.
Too bad these guys had more money than sense.
“So you say. But I think not. They could still be alive. Why quit now. Give it a chance.”
So I say? No, so the Coast Guard says. Survival tables show its possible to survive up to 40 hours in 68 degree water. Its been 72 hours.
If they were alive the Coast Guard would have found them.
Why quit now? Because it costs a lot of money to search, puts other lives at risk, and takes those rescuers away from helping other people.
It's miserable, very windy.
Those poor guys were in this kind of weather on the open sea ....how very sad.
“I can’t imagine going out on the water without checking the forecast and radar first.”
The storms can come up very very quick and you cannot out run them. From the local news the boat overturned while at anchor. Tells me they stayed there too long and the water got too rough. There were waves to 15 feet Saturday evening. This was only a 21 foot boat.
I feel so sorry for the parents. The father of one of these young men, I think Mr. Bleakely’s father, could not give up hoping. And how much worse it is for him deluding himself that his son was still alive and the Coast Guard was abandoning him to a lonely, cold death. I can’t imagine the suffering of the poor man. At least the dead men are now freed from earthly sorrows and physical pain; this father will live with his heartbreak forever.
Highly unlikely, it turned very cold there over the weekend and the reporters who were onshore waiting were all commenting how cold it was... Likely sharks got them.
Apparently, they found a life jacket and cooler 16 miles from the boat. But nothing else.
I actually had frost on my car windows this morning. Good for a joke now and then, would really suck if you were in the water.
I’ve been diving in water this cold. Even with a wet suit it sucks the strength right out of you. two hours were enough for me and I had a wet suit.
Yeah, but these are famous people. Famous people deserve more because......well, because.
</sarc>
Well I am Merchant Marine. You can survive. I am headed from Tampa to Key West tommorrow and I will sure keep a lookout. The CG is lame if they think you can not survive.
Their chances of being alive are zero with the water temperature.
Very very sad.
If they had dropped about $1200 for a decent covered 6-person life raft - they would be alive today. They are compact and deploy quickly. The ocean can kill you very quickly.
Going out 30 to 50 miles in a small one engine boat withpout a pinger and good life raft is suicide. My life is worth $1,200 and these guys had/have more money than I do.
Is a E what you said the same as what are fishermen use up here in the frigid waters..life saving suits?
Is the water that far out down in Florida cold? or Warm?
We also use devices that are locators. (cant think of proper terminology right now)
IIRC the guy who had the boat was an avid fisherman along with his Dad.
Did the storm come after they were out at sea?
We lose about one F/V a year up here.
The old time Captains have a hard time with some idiot deck hands bringing meth aboard.
Use to be just boozers in the past and that is easy to detect before leaving port.
Tell that to a sailor who has the will to live.
The lone survivor said they were trying to pull up anchor when they got hit by a side wave... I suspect the anchor was in mud and they were all trying to pull it up.. four large guys all on one side of the boat at the same time would have made the boat very easy to send turtle... very sad... even though it was only 21 feet it was a boat built with the higher sides which can sometimes give a sense of security and taking chances.
I hope you find them alive.
I doubt it though.
$200 on an EPIRB woulda worked too.
Yep. After so many hours it becomes a recovery search.
If they dont become fish/crab food that far out they may never wash ashore.
So sad.
drift is right.
Awe man.
Yes, it came up after they were out there. The morning was calm, someone commented on Fox the calm is actually normal right before a cold front moves in this time of year.... when it hit it hit fast and a deep sea fishing boat came back in early because they were taking waves over the bow and it was miserable.
Yep. The CG looking in the wrong place or they would of found em. They had life jackets.
It’s not about will, these guys I’m sure had the will to live. The CG searched well outside the parameters of the HUMAN BODY to survive. Will won’t trump human nature.
From the start of the search with the water temps what they were the only hope of finding someone alive would be if they stayed with the boat and were able to keep their body out of the water, at least off and on.
The CG was out in full force when the probability of finding them alive was .0000000000000000000000000000000000001 %, they did all they could and should be commended.
Same here.
From our home to the store it is a whole different weather situation.
Cold and windy in town.
Not sure 2 engines would have made a difference here. But $1200 on some kind of “ditch bag” (life raft etc) could have made a difference.
Emergency position indicating radiobeacons (EPIRBs) use satellite communications. The Coast Guard would know exactly where you were in about 4 minutes.
The water in the gulf is 68 degrees right now. It generally doesn’t get below 60 in winter. In the summer it can get to high 80s.
Because of the high number of pleasure boaters with little experience there are a lot of people that get into trouble.
One guy had 11 people on a 12 foot boat. From 5 months to 68 years. They stayed offshore too long and were swamped by a storm. Luckily they were only a few miles offshore and the water was warm.
I hadn’t thought of that but its likely you are correct. Better to cut the rope.
Couple choppers a Falcon and a cutter. Not much in a 50 mile square sector.
I don't like the idea of giving the FWC another way to right you a ticket, but people who don't have the foggiest idea about boating go out and kill themselves or others far too often.
The concept of right of way and the proper procedure for retrieving an anchor are things that people have no business out on the water without knowing.
“Couple choppers a Falcon and a cutter. Not much in a 50 mile square sector.”
You musta been searched one too many times by the coasties.
Your right on.
We get a real treat now and then as the Coast Guard will do practice pick ups in the bay/our back yard.
Something about a young Coast Guard man in his uniform.
A rescue Military guy with no attitude you sometimes see in say a LE guy.
This is very sad but the Coast Guard’s job is not to bail out irresponsible people.
Three pro football players plus their friend going 30 miles out in a small one engine 21’ boat without a pinger or good $1,200 covered life raft that is small to stow and fast to deploy. A SPOT pinger costs $150 or you can get a very good one for $519.
If you go out in the ocean especially 30 miles out you better have this stuff or stay at home. My life is worth $519
If you are Merch Marine you know the ocean has no mercy and will kill you very quickly.
“The real cause is the lack of a license requirement for Florida boaters. “
Not sure a license would have helped in these conditions. I’ve taken the Coast Guard class and I didn’t need it to tell me to stay off the water this last weekend.
They found the survivor, used drift patterns, etc. Covered thousands of miles searching, I’m not sure just what you would want them to do.
We use to have access to a private floating dock and as soon as the tide would start coming in we high wheeled it off the docks.
Can get unstable real quick in that mode too.
I use to leave all the gear and get KV up to land at the first sign/time of tide change then go back down for the gear.
You are right about the 2 engines but it is really dumb to go out 30 miles with a single engine 21’ boat. You are just asking for trouble. Sea Tow is not going out 30 miles. They obviously did not have a pinger or offshore life raft.
My life is worth something and you can get a pinger as cheap as $149 and a good one for $529. A good life raft is $1300 and a so so one is $300.
The ocean has no mercy and will kill in seconds.
Sad
Yep ERIB thingys is what our guys use up here if they are taking all safety precautions.
It is usually the crossing bar that sinks em up here.
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