Reservist Magazine is the award-winning official publication of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. Quarterly issues include news and feature articles about the men and women who comprise America's premier national maritime safety and security
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Around the Reserve Reserve Station Miami Beach Boat Crew Makes Dramatic Rescue of 11-Year Old For 224 years, the United States Coast Guard has earned a reputation as an elite lifesaving service. In that tradition, crews at Station Miami Beach perform nearly 900 rescues annually. One of the most recent and dramatic cases occurred on Saturday July 12, 2014, involving a 7th District Reserve crew. As the sun set over Biscayne Bay, the sky began to darken just before 8:30 p.m. The experienced crew of the 33-foot Special Purpose Craft began mooring up at Bayside Marina for their evening meal following a long and busy day including a case on the Miami River. Petty Officer 2nd Class Ricardo Regalado, known as "Regs" amongst the crew, drove the boat. Born, raised and stationed in Miami, Florida, Regalado is a boatswain's mate and qualified coxswain who has earned the respect of his crew. The feeling is mutual. "My crew is pretty seasoned," he said. "I have a really good crew," he said. Suddenly, a distress call broke through the radio static. Barely audible, the unmistakable words came through: "capsized jet ski…Monument Island…A child is not breathing". Springing into action, Regalado and his crew headed toward Flagler Monument Island, racing against time. Along with their adrenaline, their years of training kicked in. Immediately heading north, the crew navigated the Intracoastal Waterway. Traveling underneath the MacArthur Causeway, they turned east toward Flagler Monument Island, a small isle with a monument to Henry Flagler. It is located just north of Star Island. Via radio, the crew notified Station Miami Beach they were en route to the scene. The crew decided a medevac to Mount Sinai Hospital might be worth planning for and alerted their staff to have emergency medical services on stand-by. Yet something about the call struck Regalado as odd. "Jet skis usually don't capsize," he said. What actually happened was an 11-year old boy had a headache, suddenly lost consciousness, falling into the water from his jet ski. Luckily, he was wearing a life jacket, allowing him to stay afloat. While unconscious, however, the child had swallowed water increasing his risk of drowning. Grabbing onto his lifejacket, family members had been able to pull him out of the water, bringing him to the nearby Flagler Monument Island beach. Still unconscious and not breathing, the child needed immediate medical attention. As the crew arrived at the island, they spotted a large group of people huddled on the beach. "We were approaching Monument Island and saw there was obviously a problem along the shoreline," said Regalado. Then he hit the throttle, driving the boat straight onto the shoreline yet a safe distance from the crowd. Grabbing a blanket for the victim, the crew carefully transferred the boy over the starboard bow onto the vessel before heading toward Mount Sinai Hospital. Still unresponsive, the victim was brought on the forward deck along with his mother. Petty Officer 2nd Class Gregory Ewald, a machinery technician, started hailing the tender to open the Venetian Bridge allowing them to continue travelling uninterrupted. Time was of the essence. On the forward deck, Petty Officer 3rd Class Melissa Lopez del Castillo, a boatswain's mate, Petty Officer 3rd Class Emberto Gomez, a machinery technician, and Seaman Peter Martinez took turns performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. As the boat approached Mount Sinai Hospital, Fernandez informed Regalado the child had been resuscitated and was responding. "Regs, man, he's fine!" said Fernandez. Chief Petty Officer Eugenio Arencibia, the crew's supervisor, had high praise for the crew, who were pretty excited about the outcome of their speedy rescue. The Reserve boat crew from Station Miami Beach who assisted in the rescue of an 11-year old boy. Front row, l-r: BM3 Melissa Lopez del Castillo, MK2 gregory ewald, MK3 emberto gomez. Back row: Sn Peter Martinez, BM2 Ricardo Regalado. not pictured: MK2 Ricardo Fernandez. 8 RESERVIST � Issue 3 • 2014