Missing man battles 8-10 foot waves to swim to shore
By: News Staff
Email: news@abc6.com
Twitter: @ABC6
BLOCK ISLAND, R.I. (WLNE) — A man missing off Block Island is safe after swimming to shore Tuesday morning.
The Coast Guard told ABC6 News that a 22-year-old man was thrown from his vessel near Point Light at approximately 10 a.m. Tuesday.
The unidentified man was able to get to land despite the eight to ten foot seas.
#BreakingNews #CoastGuard ends search for 22-year-old male after he swims to shore on his own! Seas were 8-10 feet. #SAR
— USCGNortheast (@USCGNortheast) September 26, 2017
Block Island Police Chief Vincent Carlone says the man was fishing with friends on a 21-foot Boston Whaler when he went over the side, roughly 100 yards from shore. "As that white water crashes to shore, there’s jagged rocks below it of various sizes, so it’s very dangerous to get knocked into that water," explained Carlone. "He’s very lucky to have lived through that."
The two others on the boat called authorities for help. A search party walking along the shore found him. "He was cut up, probably got hit on rocks on his way in," Carlone said. "It’s amazing that he survived."
Even more miraculous – the man was not wearing a life vest and still made it back.
©WLNE-TV / ABC6 2017
