Huntington Harbormaster Receives Donation Of Water Rescue Device

Press release from the Town of Huntington:

3/15/2021

Halesite – Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci, Councilman Ed Smyth and Councilwoman Joan Cergol were joined by the Huntington Harbormaster’s office to accept a donation of a Stokes basket from the Greater Huntington Council of Yachting and Boating Clubs (GHCYBC) in February.

Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci stated, “We sincerely appreciate the GHCYBC’s donation of this water rescue device, which complements safety upgrades implemented on our waterways, at our Town marinas and to our response fleet during this administration.”

Councilman Ed Smyth, who sponsored a resolution directing the Department of Maritime Services to purchase two additional stokes baskets at the February 23 Town Board meeting, stated, “We are very grateful to the GHCYBC for donating this stokes basket. Now, each of the town’s three rescue boats has a new basket. We hope they never get used.”

Councilwoman Joan Cergol said, “GHCYBC has been a valued and generous waterfront partner to the Town for years and as before, I’m grateful for their thoughtful attention to boating safety and our boating public with the recent donation of this stokes basket.”

Ed Carr, Commodore of the Greater Huntington Council of Yachting and Boating Clubs, said, “The Greater Huntington Boating Council is pleased to use the proceeds from our Safe Boating Week events to purchase and donate a new Stokes Basket to the Town. This device is a critical piece of equipment for retrieving an injured person in the water, and ultimately transferring them to an ambulance.”

In November 2020, the Town Board formally accepted the donation of a Stokes basket from The Greater Huntington Council of Yacht and Boating Clubs (GHCYBC) to be used by the Department of Maritime Services on its M-1 response vessel to aid in the rescue of boaters in and around Huntington waterways; the ordered basket was delivered to GHCYBC in early 2021.

In the photo (l-r): GHCYBC Commodore Ed Carr; Councilwoman Joan Cergol; Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci; Bay Constable Mike Callahan; Councilman Ed Smyth; Senior Bay Constable Jeff Kropp; Senior Harbormaster Fred Uvena; with members of the GHCYBC outside the Huntington Harbormaster’s Office in February.

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This press release was produced by the Town of Huntington. The views expressed are the author's own.