March 15, 2013
By Florida Sportsman Newswire
From FWC Division of Law Enforcement Operations Weekly Activities Mar 8-14, 2013
Officer Clay McDonough was offshore on Joint Enforcement Agreement (JEA) patrol when he was dispatched to an overturned 22-foot recreational fishing boat 17 miles east of Ponce Inlet. The two occupants were safely pulled from the boat by a nearby charter fishing boat and brought to USCG Ponce Inlet Station. A local salvage/tow boat responded to tow the overturned boat. The tow boat experienced hull failure in the inlet and began taking on water. Officer McDonough and USCG Station Ponce inlet personnel responded to the tow boat and escorted it in safely. Later that night, another tow company sent out a tow boat to again attempt to tow the overturned vessel. This second tow boat took on water and subsequently sank. Its occupants were safely pulled from the water by another tow boat of the same company. Officer Steve LaRoche is investigating the cause of its sinking. The initial overturned boat was successfully towed into Ponce Inlet later in the day.
