A frantic search for a toddler who vanished after her parent’s boat crashed in a Florida River, ended when police found the child floating in an air pocket beneath the boat.
Police responded to a call around 10:40 p.m. Friday stating that a boat had capsized in the Indian River with an adult man, woman and two young children on board, according to Cocoa Police.
Tammy Bossard, the mother of the rescued child, said she was asleep with her 7-month-old daughter Charlotte in her arms when the boat crashed.
“I woke up in the water holding Charlotte, and I woke up right next to the boat and I saw a hole in the side of the boat, and climbed on top and shoved Charlotte up there,” Bossard said.
Soon after, her husband also climbed on top of the boat at which point they began hearing their other daughter, crying underneath the boat.
Though three of the victims were safe at that time, police were concerned that the 22-month-old girl was trapped under the boat.
The officers searched the area surrounding the boat and then hear soft cries coming from the boat, according to officer Matthew Rush.
Corporal Alan Worthy, Officer Rush, and a good Samaritan, dove into the water as Cocoa Police Department Sgt. Mike Dellatorre helped direct the men and coordinated a helicopter on scene, Rush said.
“It was very hard to see. My hand in front of me, could barely see that,” Worthy said. “We know she’s under there, we’re just not sure where and it was a very time-consuming process diving in from different points of the boat.”
Fortunately, 44 minutes after they received a call, Rush was able to pull the girl out from under the hull of the overturned recreational boat.
The child was wrapped in blankets and treated by a nurse until the group got to shore.
“Usually incidents like this don’t turn out like that,” Rush said. “A boating accident that severe with that much damage could have been a lot worse. Air pocket in the boat and a life jacket I would say saved her life.”
