SFist Photo: Coast Guard Rescue at Golden Gate Bridge
Not too long ago, we were coming up the hill from the Warming Hut (you know, that building in the Presidio that caught on fire) and noticed a big commotion involving numerous peace officers and this big Coast Guard lifeboat. We're not going to focus on this particular incident, as some people feel that's generally not a good thing to do. So, with that in mind, see you on the next page. Or not, either way.
Some call it the Werther Effect, a tendency for people to get ideas from what they read and hear. In other words, talking about some issue can make it worse.
Several people told us how this person got into the water but we didn't see for ourselves. Once he was there, the reaction was swift. The coxswain up above, the engineer and the two crew members all worked together efficiently. We also don't know what happened with the person in the cold cold water. He looked to be in surprisingly good shape, considering. We do know that these well-trained representatives of the Coast Guard did all that they could. Because of a kind of voluntary news blackout, the work our Coast Guard does might not get the attention it deserves.
The smallest branch of the United States Armed Forces appears to be well-equipped with their self-bailing, self-righting, self-everythinging, all-alloy million-dollar-plus miracle boats. (These are very similar to SF Marine 1, the flagship of the SFPD's navy recently spotted by the good people at Telstar Logistics.) Is it true that the Coasties are happy to make more rescues, as some commenters believe? We're sure they're keeping busy, what with all the helicopters buzzing about, and sometimes crash landing.
Our thanks go out to everybody at the Golden Gate Motor Lifeboat Station for all the hard work that they do. Semper Paratus, Always Ready.