Wheelchair User Rescued From Water After Dock Ramp Collapse In Florida

A wheelchair user who fell into the water in Florida on Sunday was rescued thanks to quick-thinking bystanders, a Sea Tow captain and sheriff’s deputies.

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said the “frightening situation” at Mariner Cay in Stuart on Sunday ended safely thanks to bystanders and first responders who “refused to let a man slip beneath the water.”

The sheriff’s office said it received a report of a man in the water at Mariner Cay after the ramp connecting a dock to his boat “suddenly collapsed.” The man relies on a wheelchair, and was still strapped into it when he went into the water.

Two bystanders jumped into action and held the wheelchair steady to keep the man’s head above water until help arrived. Marine Unit Deputy Mark Appler, a diver with MCFR Maritime Response Team, and a Sea Tow captain were the first to arrive on scene.

Appler secured a rope to the wheelchair to help stabilize it until additional deputies arrived, and Deputy Sam Oliver was next to get into the water to assist.

But the man was “continuing to slip from the chair,” the sheriff’s office said, so deputies and fire rescue personnel made the decision to disconnect him from the wheelchair and swim him to shore. With a life preserver keeping the victim afloat, Deputy Oliver swam him to shore to receive medical attention.

“Thanks to the quick thinking and teamwork of the bystanders, the Sea Tow captain, and responding deputies, the victim was safely rescued and suffered only minor injuries,” the sheriff’s office said.