Fishermen rescued off the coast of Atlantic Beach

A 21-foot Cobia Fish Tracker boat that capsized three miles off shore of Atlantic Beach sent four men and two boys overboard on Sept. 22, but two fishermen rescued three of the men and the two boys, while two divers from the New York Police Department Air Unit removed another man who was found unconscious and trapped under the boat.

The divers, Det. Jeffrey Dowling and Det. Darren Blum, feared the boat was sinking, but turned back when they saw a pair of feet, police said. They then pulled the trapped victim from the boat’s cabin and through several fishing lines.

Martin Safer, of Lido Beach and John Bologna, of Oceanside, were fishing approximately three miles off the coast in the Atlantic Ocean, when the boat with the six passengers overturned as they fished in what was termed “rough waters,” by the police.

Seeing the boat capsize and the men and boys in the water, Safer and Bologna raced to the scene. With Safer steering, Bologna pulled everyone from the water. The men are 56, 54, 49 and 48, and the boys are 10 and 8.

New York Police airlifted the unconscious 49-year-old Queens man to Staten University Hospital. He remains unconscious and in critical conditions, according to police. The five other capsize victims were evaluated and then released from area hospital, police said.

Nassau County Police Department Marine and Air units, bay constables and the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire department, and other local fire departments responded to the scene. LCFD served as the lead fire agency from Nassau County, said Chief Joseph Sperber, who coordinated rescue efforts with Nassau police. “We handled the transport of injured with the exception of the one what was airlifted to Staten Island,” Sperber said.