http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Air_Lines_Flight_401
Robert “Bud” Marquis, an airboat pilot, was out frog gigging with Ray Dickinsin when they witnessed the crash. They rushed in to rescue survivors. Marquis received burns to his face, arms and legs—a result of spilled jet fuel from the crashed TriStar—but continued shuttling people into and out of the crash site that night and the next day. For his efforts, he received the Humanitarian Award from the National Air Disaster Alliance/Foundation and the “Alumitec – Airboat Hero Award”, from the American Airboat Search and Rescue Association. In 2007, the Homestead, Florida resident was given an award plaque.[16] He died on November 21, 2008, from complications stemming from injuries he sustained in a fall a month earlier.[17]
I remember the night that happened. I lived in Hialeah and saw helicopters all night flying over my house taking the injured to Hialeah Hospital, among others. Airboaters rescued a lot of people that night.
Me too. I was in high school and lived in Coral Gables (still my home). At the time I was very big into catching with my best buddy and selling snakes to both the local pet stores ($8 a foot in length) for rat snakes to be pets and to the Serpentarium when we got a moccasin or the extremely rare Coral Snake ($30 a foot but they only went about 3 feet in length). We usually went out in the summers for more $$$ instead of taking more mundane summer jobs. Got us ready for the army later on. He went Special Forces and retired from there as a Lieutenant Colonel and I went regular Infantry and later Armor getting out just before making Captain, which I made in the reserves. I know we had friends who were servicing rescue efforts to the wreck with their airboats. I was just a sophomore and couldn't drive yet. My buddy was a year ahead of me and has a great little CJ Jeep we often drove out to Loop Road.