Prisoners rushed to an emergency call to rescue two people who spent an hour in the frigid San Francisco Bay waters when a 14-foot boat overturned outside the San Quentin prison walls.
A tower guard heard a call for help at 1 a.m. April 20 and alerted the fire station. Ten inmate firefighters responded.
“We found two people in the water—one conscious and one unconscious,” said inmate firefighter Sean Tiger.
Fellow firefighter Derrick Edgerly said, “I took my turnouts off, went over the wall and went into the bay. “There was no fear or hesitation. The guy needed help.”
Edgerly said he helped wrap a fire hose around the couple and fellow inmates pulled the victims up 15 feet to the shore.
The unconscious man, identified as James Laurel, 44, of Larkspur, was pronounced dead at Marin General Hospital. The woman, whose identity was unavailable at press time, was treated for exposure and released. She was wearing a life vest but Laurel was not.
Fire Capt. S. Long said, “Anyone of us was ready to jump into that water to save a life. We are human beings. We made a mistake, but it doesn’t mean that we are not capable of change.”