CHATHAM, Massachusetts (2 Aug 2005) -- A diver struck by a propeller as he climbed onto a boat's deck was seriously injured yesterday off the southern tip of Monomoy Island. The man, who authorities would not identify because they had not yet notified his family, was met by Chatham Fire and Rescue at the town fish pier and rushed to Chatham Municipal Airport, where a Boston Med-Flight helicopter from Plymouth took him to Boston Medical Center. The injured diver was being treated for leg injuries, Chatham Fire Capt. Roy Eldredge said. Eldredge said he thought the man was from Yarmouth. The Coast Guard received a mayday call at noon yesterday from the Last Straw, a 32-foot Blackfin sportfishing boat registered to Alan Bowles of South Yarmouth. The caller reported that a diver had been hit by the boat's propeller while emerging from a dive somewhere near Pollock Rip. Coast Guard Station Chatham dispatched a 22-foot boat from Stage Harbor, but because of a tricky passage through the ever-shoaling Chatham Southway inlet, the Last Straw beat the Coast Guard vessel back to the Shore Road fish pier, Coast Guard Petty Officer Michael Connelly said. As the boat returned to port, it was met and accompanied by the Chatham harbor master. Police and fire officials met the two boats at the dock, as did the Coast Guard's patrol boat, rescue officials said. According to one Coast Guard spokesman, a paramedic aboard the Last Straw had begun administering treatment. | | There were five riders aboard the Last Straw, Connelly said, and no one else was injured. One of the passengers was a paramedic and began administering treatment to the diver. It is unclear how the man came in contact with the boat's propeller, though Connelly said it happened as the man was climbing out of the water. Another Coast Guard spokesman said the Massachusetts Environmental Police will likely investigate the incident. Michael Cornet, who works at the fish pier on the fishing boat Rugrats, watched the Last Straw arrive at the dock. He described the injured man as extremely pale. ''He looked like he was in real bad shape,'' Cornet said. ''He got cut up pretty bad.'' SOURCE - Cape Cod Times |
