Lost Hope In A Sea Of Despair
March 4, 2009
The US Coast Guard has suspended the search for anymore survivors in the boating accident involving 4 men off the coast of Florida. Nick Schuyler, the man rescued Monday found clinging to the capsized boat, told Coast Guard officials the details of what transpired on the sea after the accident.
Nick Schuyler, 24, told investigators that about two to four hours after their boat capsized Saturday in rough seas, one of the two professional football players gave up hope and let himself be swept away, according to family members of two of the missing men.
A few hours later, the second one did the same.
“We were told that Nick said the two NFL players took their life jackets off and drifted out to sea,” said Bob Bleakley, whose son Will, 25, is also still missing.
With former Tampa Bay Buccaneers Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith gone, only Schuyler and Bleakley remained clinging to the boat.
Then, sometime Monday morning, Will Bleakley thought he saw a light in the distance and decided to take off his life jacket and swim to it, hoping to get help.
“I think he was delusional to think he could swim someplace,” Bleakley said.
This has to be heartbreaking news to the families and friends of these men as they search for them and the answers to what happened. Unfortunately this is behavior that is often seen in people with severe hypothermia where they lose their sense and start removing clothing or having delusions. These men didn’t give up these actions were just the results of the brain shutting down. These men fought hard to survive in conditions that were nearly impossible.
A privately funded search will continue but the US Coast Guard has suspended the official search,
The Coast Guard is ending its search for missing boaters Marquis Cooper, Corey Smith and Will Bleakley at sunset tonight, according to Capt. Timothy Close.
Families were told the news prior to a 4 p.m. press conference. The Coast Guard rescuers said they were confident no survivors would be found in the Gulf of Mexico 60 hours after the search began.
Thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of these men.
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That is very sad to hear about and my thoughts and prayers go out to the families.