Crab table and bamboo help save captain’s life as boat sinks in bay, Coast Guard says

UPDATE: Timothy Cheramie has been found safe, the Coast Guard announced Jan. 10. The agency told McClatchy News that Cheramie reappeared at a marina in Louisiana after traveling from a nearby bay “on his own power.”

He reportedly used a crab table and bamboo to get to safety, officials said, and he’s in good health.

The original story is below.

A missing man was last seen trying to salvage his shrimping boat in Louisiana, the Coast Guard said.

Then his boat turned up partially sunk with no one on board.

Family members haven’t seen Timothy Cheramie since the afternoon of Jan. 4, Petty Officer Third Class Anthony Randisi told McClatchy News. Cheramie was reportedly trying to save his boat.

The Coast Guard initially reported he was last seen Jan. 6 trying to save his boat, but that date was later revised to Jan. 4.

Coast Guard rescuers from New Orleans and Mobile are assisting in an aerial search of the Venice area, the agency said in a Jan. 9 news release.

Randisi said Cheramie’s boat was found in the area of Sandy Point, partially submerged in the bay. He didn’t say when the vessel was found.

The agency continues its search, and the investigation is ongoing, Randisi said.

Cheramie was last seen wearing a white top and jeans. The Coast Guard is asking anyone with information to call 504-365-2200.

Venice is near the southeastern point of Louisiana, where the Mississippi River empties into the Gulf of Mexico. The community is about 80 miles southeast of New Orleans.

This story was originally published January 9, 2024 at 11:28 AM with the headline "Crab table and bamboo help save captain’s life as boat sinks in bay, Coast Guard says."