Many of you probably read the blog I wrote some 6 months back when this happened but since the show that covers this will airs on this Thursday 1/12/12 I thought a little refresher would be in order. While trolling for Tuna and looking for tailing Marlin of Gordo Bank near San Jose del Cabo we received a distress call over the radio. Now my Spanglish is NOT TOO GOOD ut I did understand the TONE of the call and the words “todos barcos” ”All boats”. I figured that can’t be good and went to inquire of Captain Javier as to what the situation was. Javier told me a boat a had gone down with 7 divers aboard and they didn’t really know where they were other than the Gordo Bank …somewhere. That is the equivalent of saying “There is a car accident somewhere in Denver Colorado can you assist???” Javier said let’s troll a little faster and see if we can see these guys. thirty minutes later a second call came in and I told el Capitan to pull the lines in and run in the direct we think the guys might be.
About 15 minutes later the Marine helicopter flew by, but by his searching back and worth mode we know they hd not located the guys either. Going out of sight and then returning some 15 minutes more the helicopter began to circle and decend a bit. Captain Javier ran hard to that spot to find not 7 but 11 guys floating on whatever was debris there was. As we approached the Marine rescue boat blew by us and started assisting divers into the boat …all except one lone diver about 100 yards to the South.
He had a chartreuse colored float that haws waving but you could tell he was about out of gas as it looked like a spastic windshield wiper!!! I told the Capt. to get run over to this single diver and Javi (Javier’s son) and I threw him a life ring to pull him to the boat.
The heck of it was these 11 guys were in a very small boat, 25 miles offshore, NO radio, NO life jackets and were CHUMMING SHARKS and videoing them!!!
The was a Thursday afternoon. Friday night was the Grand Opening of the Grand SolMar Lands End Resort and Spa. Dignitatiroes and politicians from all over Baja and Mexico attended as well as Senior Luis Bulnes who passed away later that year (2011). At the party, Jean Luis Magron, the Grand Solmar’s manager introduced me to an Admiral in the Mexican Navy and the thank you’s and hugs went all around!!! Some 30 minutes later a reporter from Televis (the CNN of Mexico) interviewed me for a segment that was broadcast nation wide in Mexico that next Monday. The following Sunday a Mary and I were given a tour of the Marine base in Cabo and a 45 minute ride on one of the patrol boats as a thank you for helping out. What a trip!!! See the Televisa Video below!
