FORT MYERS

Missing boaters rescued off Shell Point Marina

news-press.com
Two men were rescued after their boat ran ran aground Monday near Shell Point Marina

Two boaters reported missing Monday morning were found two hours later on their 20-foot aground sailboat near Shell Point Marina by the Coast Guard and the Lee County Sheriff's Office.

A friend of the two men reported the men missing around 5 a.m. Monday, when she had not heard from them after they left the Marina around 5 p.m. Sunday.

A Coast Guard boat found the men on the sailboat aground outside the marina at 7 a.m.

The crew inspected the vessel and found no safety equipment on board. The men said the sailboat was purchased to be refurbished. The boat had no sails or motor, the men were using a trolling motor attached to the sailboat to move.

"We always want boaters to be prepared for anything to happen on the water," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Grant T. Lacy. "Even short trips are dangerous without proper safety equipment required by law. There was no safety equipment a radio, lifejackets, flares, etc., that could have aided these men if the situated deteriorated."

Two men were rescued after their boat ran ran aground Monday near Shell Point Marina