It’s been a couple of weeks since Nick Schuyler was rescued by the Coast Guard after a boat he was on with three friends, including NFL players Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith, capsized while on a fishing trip. Schuyler was the lone survivor of the ordeal as both Cooper and Smith along with Will Bleakley were never found. It’s a tragic story, and one we’re finally starting to get a clearer picture of now that Schuyler’s recovering.
At first Schuyler told authorities that the two NFL players just gave up and let themselves drift away while Bleakley hung in for a few days before making a swim for it. According to a new 23-page report by the Coast Guard we now have a better idea of what really happened, and as it turns out, Schuyler’s original account wasn’t very far off although there are some new disturbing details.
According to the report the trouble started when the 21-foot boat’s anchor became stuck in what Schuyler believed to be some coral reef, causing it to start filling with water. Then as the men tried to free the anchor, the boat capsized and sent them into the 62-degree ocean.
From USA TODAY:
Schuyler told the Coast Guard that one of the men “freaked out” and took off his life vest and disappeared that night.
Another one of the men started getting unruly and throwing punches later. Schuyler told the Coast Guard the second man also took off his life jacket, dove under the water and was never seen again. The third man thought he saw land nearly two days after the boat capsized and decided to swim for it.
Schuyler told investigators that man said his life jacket was too tight and he took it off.
Officials have said that they eventually found three life jackets; one on Schuyler; another near the boat and a third underneath it. The bodies of the three who disappeared have not been found.
It should be said that there’s no way to know for sure how accurate Schuyler’s account of the story is, but for the most part these latest details seem to follow what Schuyler said when he was first rescued.
7:25 pm on March 17th, 2009
gimme a break!…So the other 3 were raving lunatics that basically committed suicide, and this guy was the only strong one that was able to keep a clear head ( but apparently he was only able to comfort himself). Sounds like the beginning of one of those bad-cover up movies
12:11 pm on March 19th, 2009
I really hope someone looks into this….it's kinda funny how three big strong guys just give up and one (wearing an awful lot of warm clothing) is just sitting on the boat waiting for someone to come get him with no sunburn after 46 hours of being exposed to the reflection of the sun….wow am I the only one that thinks this doesn't look right
9:37 pm on March 19th, 2009
Think rationally… Why are you assuming the most negative scenario? These men were hypothermic and their blood circulation was not adequate to provide these men with amazing mental skills. They were almost certainly delusional. I find it difficult to believe that Nick Schuyler would want to be alone in such a dramatic situation. Do you think he wanted them dead? He was sitting on the hull of the boat to get out of the water. If you mental giants would like to propose a suggestion as to another way to survive the situation that Schuyler did, I would certainly like to hear it! You sound a bit hypothermic to me.
12:09 am on March 21st, 2009
Who knows how they would have reacted if they wern't in the situation, we r talkin life r death
12:59 am on March 22nd, 2009
This is depressing to me. I'm in the same age group as these guys and it just makes me reflect on my life and accomplishments, and what I want to accomplish in the future. These 3 handsome men werent even 30 years old and they had sooo much potential. All I can wish now is that they found a refuge in heaven. RIP Corey, Marquis and Will
10:39 am on February 7th, 2010
I think this could happen if the other 3 were in the water the whole time and he was on the boat. Being in the water would mean you have hypothermia and will die for sure if you can’t get out on onto the boat. If they swallowed any seawater, they would go crazy because of the salt.
2:48 pm on June 9th, 2011
Sunburn kicks in real quickly. As A nurse as I looked at the video of the young man being taken to the hospital, he appeared to show very little if any signs of distress.Salt water burns your eyes like crazy. Imagine all the splashing waves! Lips, burning & peeling. Very wrinkled skin if you stay in the bath tub for more than 1 hour. Not to mention the incredible mental upset mood that comes with and experience of 1 person dying this way before your eyes. Medical records would be telling. Just saying as a professional.