The U.S. Coast Guard made a chance rescue Feb. 9, finding two stranded boaters who had been unable to call for help about 35 miles west of Anna Maria Island in the Gulf of Mexico, where their boat capsized.
A third person from the boat was missing. The Coast Guard rescued and transported the two people to safety but search efforts for the missing person were halted early Feb. 10 after 11 hours of searching.
The Coast Guard had declined to name the boaters or their launch point, but in a Feb. 12 interview with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Officer Forest Rothchild, The Islander confirmed the missing boater is Jose Cruz Ledesma, 60, of Tampa.
The vessel departed from a Maximo Marina boat ramp in St. Petersburg.
Coast Guard reports state that a 28-foot boat overturned and sank and the individuals were found clinging to debris.
Two boaters were rescued by the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Shrike.
Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg public information officer Nicole Groll told The Islander Feb. 10 that survivors told USCG crew members the vessel had taken on water and capsized, forcing them into the water without life jackets or a chance to call for help.
“There was no emergency position-indicating beacon or extra alert. So if the Shrike hadn’t been out there, we wouldn’t have known what was going on. If they made a radio distress call, we didn’t receive it,” Groll said.
Coast Guard Station Cortez assisted in the search and brought the survivors to awaiting EMS at the village station.
A Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater helicopter was deployed to assist in the search for the third boater.
Groll said the Coast Guard recommends always wearing a life jacket while aboard any seagoing vessel.
“Wearing an inconspicuous life jacket can save a life,” she said.