Captain John Flynn, the Hyline Crew, passengers, lifeguards, a charter captain and a Sconset summer resident!
Captain John Flynn and his crew of the Hy-Line ferry Grey Lady IV
In June a man in his late 70’s fell off the Steamship Authority’s freight boat. When the Grey Lady IV came across the scene, they heard the man’s cries for help. Captain Flynn instructed his crew to go into man-overboard procedure. It was a very difficult and complex rescue and the man was going into hypothermia. If it were not for the brave actions of the captain and the crew and several other volunteers on that ferry this gentleman would have almost certainly not survived. Please watch the video for the fascinating details of this amazing team effort.
Nantucket lifeguards Matt Finlay and Marcus Gold and fishing charter captain and owner of Bill Fisher Tackle, Corey Gammill
On June 14, Matt and Marcus were on patrol near Ladies Beach when they spotted someone in distress over a half mile offshore. When they got closer, they realized it was actually a small child, his father and a family friend. The father pleaded to Matt and Marcus "Please save my kid!" The child was on a paddle board and the boy was rapidly being pushed out to sea. As the lifeguards were furiously swimming to save the child, Capt. Corey Gammill and his boat arrived. In a group effort they saved all 3 individuals and got them into the boat. They made emergency calls on their way to Madaket Harbor where they were met by EMT's, ambulances and Harbormaster Sheila Lucey and her staff. It should be noted that Matt and Marcus received their lifeguard training from Sheila and other members of her talented staff.
Scott Silverman, a Sconset summer resident
During the late afternoon of July 27th Scott was enjoying Sconset Beach when he spotted an older man of about 80 or 90 in the surf. The gentleman got knocked over by a wave, struggling to stand up. When it happened a 2nd time and he didn’t get up, Scott, recalling his teenage training as a lifeguard, started sprinting towards the man. Scott found the man underwater, grabbed the man under his arms and managed to raise him up. It was a very rough surf day, but Scott managed to hold on to him and walked him out of the water to his chair on the beach. Once again, an unfortunate outcome was avoided by an observant and intrepid individual willing to save a stranger.