11-58-CWS | May 17, 2011
BILOXI, Miss. —The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (DMR) Marine Patrol rescued one boater and another boater swam ashore when the 16-foot catamaran they were on capsized in rough seas in the Bay of St. Louis between Cedar Point and the Bay-Waveland Yacht Club.
DMR Marine Patrol Officers Bryan Wallace and Johnny Ladner were dispatched to the scene at 7:33 p.m. Monday night when the call came in from the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.
Randall Nathan Pigott, 29, of Carriere, was pulled from the water by DMR marine patrol officers on the Hancock County side between the Bay bridge and the train bridge at 8:33 p.m. and taken to the Bay-Waveland Yacht Club.
Steven Perry Whitfield, 25, of Picayune, swam ashore on the Harrison County side north of the Bay bridge and went to a home on Sandy Hook Drive in Pass Christian for help.
Both men were wearing life jackets.
Both men were taken to Memorial Hospital at Gulfport by American Medical Response.
Other agencies responding to the incident included Hancock County Sheriff’s Department, Harrison County Sheriff’s Department, Harrison County Fire Department, Bay St. Louis Police Department and Pass Christian Police Department.
At the time of the accident, the winds were 15 to 25 knots and seas were at four to six feet.
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving marine interests of the state by managing all marine life, public trust wetlands, adjacent uplands and waterfront areas to provide for the optimal commercial, recreational, educational and economic uses of these resources consistent with environmental concerns and social changes. Visit the DMR online at www.dmr.ms.gov.
Contact: Lauren Thompson
Phone: 228-523-4053
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