Boater Stranded at Sea Was Convinced ‘I’m Going to Die’ — Then a Sweet Seal Helped Save His Life
When urchin diver Scott Thompson went tumbling overboard into the ocean while his boat was still in gear, he thought he was about to meet his demise—until a friendly seal showed up and “encouraged” him to swim for his life.
Scott went surfing last month on the Santa Barbara Channel. Before leaving, he called his wife to let her know that he would be camping on his 22’ Anderson boat, Miss Grace, for the night.
Scott set sail for sea at 3:30 p.m. but decided to head home when he encountered a windy gap.
He stopped about halfway into his return trip and throttled back. A friend offered to meet him in the harbor and help with his boat. He stopped to use the bathroom, but forgot one important thing.
“I was taught by the best urchin divers in the business about safety, but for whatever reason, I was careless, and did not take the boat out of gear,” he wrote in a post on the blog Sour Milk.
Scott lost his balance when a huge wave slapped against the side of the boat. He saw the rope from his davit, and tried to grab it to catch him, but he missed the mark and fell into the water.
Scott, a diver expert and a swimmer, tried to swim after Miss Grace. But it was getting farther and further away. But about a minute in, he realized he wouldn’t be able to catch it.
Scott realized what was happening and panic set in. He was seven to eight miles away from shore and, worse, he was wearing only a tshirt and shorts.
“I was treading water and all I was thinking was, ‘Great! I’m gonna die!’” he recalled.
Scott pulled it together and looked around for his next move. There was no vessel in sight, and swimming to the beach wasn’t an option because it was too far. He decided to head toward Platform Gail. It was fortunate that the current was heading toward it.
Scott kept his thoughts on his friends and family as he swam. This helped him to stay motivated whenever he felt down. Despite feeling “very lonely and isolated,” he knew he had to make it for his loved ones.
Scott suddenly heard a loud splash. He wasn’t even thinking about the many Great White sharks that live in the area at that point, but when he heard that sound, he thought he was about to encounter one.
Thankfully, it wasn’t a shark but a little seal that popped its head out of the water right next to him.
“I had never been so overwhelmed with joy to see another living creature in my life! I was like, ‘Oh my God! There is something out here with me that is alive,’” Scott recalled.
The seal quickly became his best friend. The mammal would disappear underwater, then pop up again, looking at Scott. Scott would speak to the creature to calm his nerves.
Twice, when he stopped swimming, and began to tread water to get his bearings and balance, the seal went under and nudged his back and butt, as if it was telling him to keep going.
The seal eventually disappeared and went under. Scott was probably already four hours at sea by this time. He was tired and it was pitch black that night because there wasn’t a moon.
He saw a light out of the corner his eye. Scott was approximately 500 feet away from the oil platform when he heard the diesel engine ring. He took another adrenaline shot and swam as hard to reach the nearest tower, which was covered by giant mussels and barnacles.
Finally, he found a ladder leading to a metal-grate platform and a set if stairs. He reached the ladder and climbed up until he came to a room with a flashlight. He saw a man seated behind a computer.
He began banging on the window. Scott explained to the guy that he had fallen from his boat and was now hypothermic.
Another man arrived, and they called an ambulance to bring Scott out of the freezer and provide him with the medical attention that he needed. Scott was taken to the hospital where an IV was placed in his arm. All the saltwater that he had swallowed made him feel extremely nauseated.
The following day, a doctor came in to say that Scott’s tests had all checked out and that he could go home whenever he was ready. Luckily, he walked away with only “cuts, slices, and bruises.”
TowBoatU.S. members helped him with his boat. Miss Grace was rescued from the shore by TowBoatU.S. volunteers who worked late into the night. It sustained minimal damage and needed repairs.
Scott is currently home with his family, “sore, exhausted, humbled and grateful…and just so happy to be alive.”
A family friend set up a GoFundMe account to help repair Miss Grace. Scott calls Miss Grace his sanctuary and livelihood.
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