SEATTLE — You never know what you might see on an Argosy Cruise, especially when you are the captain.
“I think on three occasions, [I've seen] humpback whales and on about six occasions, orca whales,” said Captain John Darmody, who has been a captain with Argosy Cruises in Seattle since 2021.
While being the captain for a private charter Wednesday, Captain Darmody chose to take a different route than normal due to high winds and the wind direction.
“We went out past Alki Point and down towards Lincoln Park, which we pretty much never do,” said Darmody.
That's where he saw something much more alarming than the normal sightseeing views.
“I had noticed a paddleboarder earlier in that area paddling, and then on our way back, like out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the paddleboard, but I didn't see anyone,” said Darmody. “So that was when I got my binoculars.”
He saw a man unsuccessfully trying to get on his paddle board multiple times, even going under water in the waves despite having a life jacket.
"I got on the loudspeaker system to announce to the crew that we were going to assist a person in distress,” said Darmody.
That is when he turned the boat around and the rescue started.
While Darmody controlled the large boat to get close enough to the man to save him with a ring, but to avoid running him over in the high winds, he credits other crew members with getting the man safely on board and getting him dry clothes and warming blankets.
When the rescue first started Darmody alerted the Coast Guard who then alerted Seattle Fire. Fire crews were arriving on their boat right near the time the boat crew had pulled the man onboard.
The boat crew then gave the man over to Seattle Fire, who took the man to the hospital.
“Probably exhaustion and hypothermia,” said Darmody of what the man may have been treated for. “He was very cold when we got him out of the water, and it had taken a lot of energy on his part to swim.”
Darmody said the man was alone, the sun was going down, and he was too far from shore for people to see him from the ferry dock as he struggled in the windy weather.
“I think it would have been unlikely that he would have survived if we hadn't been there,” said Darmody.
The man is now out of the hospital and even delivered a thank you card to Argosy Cruises. As for Captain Darmody, he said it wasn't a sight he wanted to see that day, but it was a sight he is glad he spotted.
“I feel like I really was just sort of doing my job. I think the special thing was just I happened to notice something was wrong in my gut and I am thankful that we happened to be in the right place at the right time,” said Darmody.