On Aug. 26 at approximately 2:45 p.m. Deal police officers were dispatched to the Deal Casino beach for report of a capsized vessel with victims in the water.
When they arrived Deal Lifeguards Bailey Crochet and Jake Shirley were observed rowing out in the lifeguard boat to attempt to rescue the occupants. Officers on scene contacted the U.S. Coast Guard and they dispatched to the scene.
The lifeguards were able to reach all three occupants of the capsized vessel within a few minutes while fighting a 25-30 mph southeast wind. They began to guide the disabled vessel to shore with all three occupants safely on board when a second Hobie Cat arrived on scene.
One of the occupants of the second Hobie Cat then entered the water in an attempt to assist and subsequently became the fourth victim. Lifeguards Crochet and Shirley were able to then assist the fourth victim and bring all four to shore without incident. It was determined the first Hobie Cat’s mast snapped at the base which caused the vessel to be disabled.
Officers involved included Lt Matt Sharin, Sgt Brian Egan, Ptl Jeff Kelss, Officer Dale Wong, Officer Chris Schou, Officer Robert Graziano, Officer Jenifer Velasquez and Officer Joseph Calao.
