Coast Guard officials are crediting life jackets with saving the lives of two Bryan County parents and their child who were rescued from Ossabaw Island by a helicopter crew early Sunday morning.
Their boat began taking on water, causing them to abandon ship into the Ossabaw Sound, where they drifted for more than two hours, said Petty Officer First Class Lauren Jorgensen, a Coast Guard spokeswoman.
A concerned neighbor of the Ellabell family called Coast Guard watchstanders about 10:20 p.m. Saturday to report that the trio had not returned from their boating trip before sunset as intended.
After the neighbor confirmed the family’s vehicle and trailer were still at Bell’s Landing boat ramp, where they launched earlier in the day, crewmembers aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter from Air Station Savannah and a boat crew aboard a 25-foot response boat from Coast Guard Station Tybee Island launched to search, Jorgensen said.
A Savannah-Chatham police helicopter crew spotted the boat anchored and partially submerged at the northern tip of Ossabaw Island at 1:15 a.m. Sunday. Forty minutes later, the Coast Guard air crew located the family of three on the beach on Ossabaw Island about two and a half miles away from the boat, Jorgensen said.
Jerry, Jenna and 4-year-old Justin Mitchell were flown to Hunter Army Airfield, where they were reunited with other family members. There were no injuries reported.
The family told the air crew that they put their life jackets on and attempted to swim to shore after their boat began taking on water, but they got swept out to sea with the outgoing tide and drifted in Ossabaw Sound and the Atlantic Ocean for about two hours before the tide shifted, pushing them back toward Ossabaw Island, Jorgensen said.
“We hit a sandbar, my husband tried to reverse to get off the sandbar but it pulled water into the boat, the high tide and waves started pulling water in too, so we abandoned the boat and tried to swim for the buoy,” Jenna Mitchell said.
However, the tide and current pushed them away from the buoy and eventually back to the boat.
“I saw a shark fin in the water, I was really scared, but it went away,” Mitchell said.
After a couple hours, they decided to swim for Ossabaw Island.
“When we got to the beach we sat down and prayed and thanked God for keeping us together and safe,” Mitchell said. “It felt really good to put the sand between our toes and be on land.”
The family had cellphones with them but they fell into the water when they hit the sandbar.
“This rescue is a perfect example of why life jackets and float plans are vitally important tools for mariners to use, and could be the determining factor in survival following an accident,” said Lt. Cmdr. Derek Beatty of the Coast Guard Sector Charleston, S.C., command center in a written statement. “Had the neighbor not known the family’s estimated return time or whereabouts, there’s no telling how long they would have been stranded. It’s also unlikely all three would have survived in the open water for two hours without life jackets. They were well prepared, and it paid off ten-fold.”
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources and Coffee Bluff Marine Rescue Squadron assisted with the search.
Old Whitefield closed for work
Old Whitefield Avenue from Ga. 204 Spur/Whitefield Avenue to Bethesda Road will be closed for roadwork through Tuesday, weather permitting, as crews work on road alignment and remove the existing roadway.
The Georgia Department of Transportation said the road will reopen at 5 p.m. Tuesday.
Local traffic will have access to residences in the area.
The detour routes will be signed as follows:
• Ga. 204 Spur/Whitefield Avenue.
• Ferguson Avenue.
• Glade Street.
• Old Whitefield Avenue.
Compiled by Jamie Parker and Dash Coleman