Boaters and the Coast Guard rescued a pair of men whose 14-foot skiff overturned near Elfin Cove Tuesday night, according to the Coast Guard.
The two men, 64 and 65 years old, are brothers, according to a USCG news release. They were reported to be alive but unconscious and in critical but stable condition at the time of the medevac. They were travelling from Sitka to Pelican when their skiff overturned about 70 miles west of Juneau, according to the release.
“This case demonstrates just how valuable good Samaritans are in Southeast Alaska,” said Lt. Brian Dykens, Command Center Chief for Coast Guard Sector Juneau, in the press release. “We are thankful for the several mariners who reported the incident and responded to aid the two men in the frigid waters. They really made the difference here between life and death.”
Sector Juneau received reports of two people in the water near Elfin Cove at roughly 6:10 p.m., according to a news release. They broadcast a warning to all boaters in the area and requested the launch of the ready helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Sitka.
After Good Samaritan boaters pulled the two unconscious men out of the water, they took them to the pier at Elfin Cove where an MH-60 Jayhawkmedevac’d the men to Bartlett Regional Hospital.
Wearing lifejackets added to the survivability of the capsized men, according to the Coast Guard. The names of the vessel and boaters involved in the rescue were not released.
• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757.621.1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.
