MDMR officer rescues boater

BILOXI, Miss. – A Marine Patrol officer with the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources rescued a boater Saturday whose vessel had capsized. The boater, Harry Lonas, 42, of Hattiesburg, called 911 after his boat turned over in the Biloxi Bay near the Biloxi-Ocean Springs Bridge. Dispatchers in Ocean Springs notified MDMR at 1:30 p.m. about the accident. Within five minutes. Officer Baron O’Grady reached Lonas and helped him to the patrol boat. O’Grady transported Lonas to the Ocean Springs Harbor, where he was treated by Acadian Ambulance for minor injuries and released. O’Grady, along with officers Patrick Carron and Patrick Webb, were able to right the capsized vessel and tow it to the Kuhn Street Boat Ramp, where Lonas picked it up.

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.