Father, son marine police officers speak out after rescuing 6 people from sinking boat
A Florida father and son were recently captured on camera helping rescue a family of six from their sinking boat on a lake in Osceola County.
St. Cloud Police officer Michael Macdonald and his son, officer Shayne Macdonald, who are both part of the department's marine unit, told "Good Morning America" they got a distress call on May 2 about a boat that was capsizing on East Lake Tohopekaliga and raced to the scene.
When they arrived, they said the boat, which was situated 2 miles from shore, was taking on water and in danger of fully submerging.
"We hopped in the [marine police] boat, flew across the lake, and we were trying to get them out of the [capsizing] boat as soon as we could before we had a tragedy on our hands," Michael Macdonald said in an interview that aired Wednesday on "GMA."
The dramatic water rescue was captured in body camera video, while the Osceola County Sheriff's Office recorded the incident from above.
Helicopter video footage shows rescuers battling choppy waves due to worsening weather conditions, and the bow of the boat appears to be almost entirely submerged when two people finally jump into the water wearing life preservers.
"A storm advisory issued earlier that day had created hazardous conditions. The Aviation (STAR) Unit quickly located the vessel and guided responding units to the scene," Osceola County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Tuesday. "The Ag. Marine Unit, Patrol deputies, and the St. Cloud Police Department Marine Unit, assisted by a Good Samaritan, coordinated a swift water rescue."
All six individuals on the sinking boat were safely rescued, according to the sheriff's office, and were evaluated by Osceola County Fire Rescue on scene with no serious injuries reported.
Speaking about the water rescue afterward, Shayne Macdonald said, "When it comes down to it, our training really kicks in and we can take care of what we have to do."
Michael Macdonald added, "Everything was phenomenal that day and worked out perfectly."
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