Kudos to Marine Patrol officers for saving boat

Art Femister recently made a point of thanking two Canyon Lake Marine Patrol officers for “the tremendous job they did saving a sinking boat and going far beyond the call of duty.”

On that very hot Monday, June 20, Art says he noticed from his house on East Bay’s main channel a boat docked across the channel leaning to the left (port) with the stern (back) of the boat partially under water. He could tell the boat was taking on water and slowly sinking. Because the house was vacant, he notified Marine Patrol.

“Within minutes of my phone, call two Marine Patrol officers in two separate boats arrived and literally jumped into action to save the boat,” says Art. “Both officers, Christopher Barrett (who always wears a tan cowboy hat) and Jordan Sadler (a very tall, lean young man) climbed into the sinking boat and began pumping water out using nothing but their little manual hand pumps.”

Art says what amazed him most was that the young officers pumped for one hour, non-stop in 117 degree heat, wearing their uniforms, until the owner could be found to deal with the situation.

“I’ve had my share of less-than-positive words in the past as I wanted to see more of Marine Patrol in the East Bay to slow down speeding boats that throw large wakes,” says Art. “But a good job deserves recognition. These two young men did a great job and worked hard to save a POA member’s boat.”

After the owner arrived, and with enough water removed, the boat was moved to East Port where the owner towed it out of the water. Art says it’s important to note that, if the boat had sunk or the engine had gone underwater, there could have been a hazmat situation. The potential for oils, gas and other fluids in the engine to be released into the lake was great.

“Having spent a number of years in the U.S. Coast Guard myself, I’ve seen enough sinking boats to know what happens when they go under. There is usually an oil trail above the water where it sunk,” says Art. “These two Marine Patrol officers not only saved a person’s boat but also saved our lake from possible contamination of hazardous materials in our water and the precious wildlife that call it home with us.”

He adds, “I want to personally thank and congratulate Canyon Lake Marine Patrol Officers Christopher Barrett and Jordan Sadler for going way above and beyond the call of duty as I assure you their employee manual says nothing about pumping water from a sinking boat for an hour straight in 117 degree heat while standing in water while wearing their full uniform, shoes, socks, etc. If you see these young men out there on patrol, please give them a friendly wave and smile. I’m sure they would appreciate it!”