Bronx fisherman drowns in boating mishap

[williehookem]

Wanted to share with the fishing community. A reminder that no matter how good a shape you think you are in, you never know when you could die out there. Be safe fellas.





THROGS NECK, Bronx (PIX11) ? Jesus Ortega was a really good swimmer and a Navy veteran, according to his family, who worked by day in a Long Island City factory.



But the 46-year-old?s real passion was on the nights and weekends when he would fish round the clock.



?He could swim from here to Orchard Beach. I don?t know many people who can do that,? Ortega?s daughter-in-law, Frances Batista told PIX11. ?Drowned, are you kidding?? she added.



So these grieving relatives and friends cannot understand the police version of what happened.



Police Say Ortega and a friend were fishing from an anchored boat near the Stepping Stone Lighthouse off the Bronx shoreline near the Throgs Neck Bridge when they panicked that a cruising powerboat was going to smash right into them.



Both men jumped into the Long Island sound around 11:40 PM to avoid being hit.



When the boat passed without hitting them, Ortega?s 53-year-old friend climbed back into their boat but Ortega did not.



?His friend keeps looking for him. He hears Jesus say I am drowning, but he can?t find him,? Batista said.



The NYPD Harbor unit, Coast Guard, and the FDNY emergency response pulled Ortega out of the water and rushed him to the hospital where he later died.



Now his family and friends want those in the other boat held criminally responsible for Ortega?s death.



?Where is the other boat? Why aren?t the detectives going after the other boat?? Batista asked.



The city?s Medical Examiner will determine the exact cause of death.



The NYPD says there is no criminality in this boating accident.



?I miss him already,? Ortega?s friend, Geraldo Diaz said, trying to hold back his sobs



story from- http://pix11.com/2014/06/28/bronx-fi...oating-mishap/

[DarkSkies]

Wanted to share with the fishing community. A reminder that no matter how good a shape you think you are in, you never know when you could die out there. Be safe fellas.
Police Say Ortega and a friend were fishing from an anchored boat near the Stepping Stone Lighthouse off the Bronx shoreline near the Throgs Neck Bridge when they panicked that a cruising powerboat was going to smash right into them.



Both men jumped into the Long Island sound around 11:40 PM to avoid being hit.

That story gave me chills, Willie.

Enough time has gone by, that I can share my Stepping Stone story......was too embarassed to talk about it for awhile.....

When I first started fishing the Sound at night, I was too proud to ask anyone for advice. I just went over there and figured I would find the fish. I took my yak out and was trolling, didn't really know the area. No fish at all for me.

I knew they were catching fish at the Stepping Stone lighthouse at night. The channels were pretty deep there. As mentioned the big ships pass by there coming up and down the East River and various places in the Bronx.

It was late at night and I knew about the traffic, figured a late night trip peddling over there would not be that risky.
Once I got there, I anchored my yak on some rocks and walked around a bit.
Saw there are lots of crabs on those rocks and that's one of the things that probably draws the bass and fish there.

That was a few years ago. At that time I didn't pay as much attention to extended wind forecasts like I do now. I won't go out on the yak now at night if the winds are forecast to be over 10mph.

The wind started kicking up from the N. In the space of a few minutes it went to about 20mph, putting whitecaps on the water there.
I knew I had to get the hell out of there and back to the launch.

I got in the water and a bit of panic crept over me. I was scared, really scared. At that time I was not carrying a VHF, which in retrospect was pretty stupid.

As I pushed away from those rocks, survival mode crept over. I told myself:
"Rich you are an idiot! You should have known better than to come all the way out here by yourself at night and not really know the deal.
You will survive, you will learn from this, and never make this particular mistake again!"

I got in that yak and pedalled and paddled like Satan himself was after me. (and he probably was)
I finally made it to a part of the land, near City island, where the land provided a lee from the relentless wind.
I made my way around the S part of the Island to keep that lee to my benefit until I got back to the launch.

In all honesty, once I got within 100 yards of City Island I was ok. It's amazing how once you find a lee from the wind in the yak, your level of anxiety can drop.

Still, looking back at that experience, I'm probably lucky I made it out of there. I was coming back, in the middle of the night, crossing over deep water channels with swells 2' and better.

I have really come to love fishing the Sound at night because you can often find protected areas for different types of wind. I have spent many a night out there, fishing calm, quiet water, with little boat traffic except for the commercial ships. The rocky coves are paradise for a yak fisherman, and hardly anyone up there fishes at night. You can have the whole place to yourself all night without ever running into a soul. It's so free of night traffic I often think of it as my own private fishing reserve.

It's still a big body of water, and can get ugly with certain wind patterns.
You have to be self-reliant and have contingency plans. If anything happens to you at night, you are all alone, on your own, and have to figure a way out of it by yourself. I learned my lesson that night, and have made adjustments in my yak fish planning to be more careful at night because of it.














Reading that account of what happened, brought me back to my night of mis-adventure and danger.
I see that Jesus Ortega was a good fisherman, and knew that water well. Knowing that is even more chilling.
You never know when things can turn around on you on the water out there, especially at night.

My deepest thoughts and condolences to the Ortega family.
May God watch over them in this time of sorrow.

[seamonkey]

Wow sounds scarey. Thoughts and prayers to the family.

[nitestrikes]

It's still a big body of water, and can get ugly with certain wind patterns.
You have to be self-reliant and have contingency plans. If anything happens to you at night, you are all alone, on your own, and have to figure a way out of it by yourself.

They say the sea is a jealous mistress. Same thing with the sound. Be careful out there gents. T&P sent.

[BassBuddah]

Prayers sent.

[robmedina]

I think the operative word in the story was PANIC. Although Jesus Ortega was a great swimmer, his panic took over and he drowned in an otherwise manageable swim. Dark- if you had panicked you probably wouldn't be here to tell your story.

[DarkSkies]

^ Thanks for your perspective, Rob....
I have no issues with folks stating their opinions, but have seen some real insensitive posts on other sites, when folks happen to die, or dead bodies are found. We have to remember this is the internet and there is no telling when some family members might come across insensitive posts. It could increase their suffering.
Again..... I don't feel you said anything wrong here. It's the insensitivity and callousness of others that gets to me sometimes, and makes me grateful that I don't have to deal with that BS from the members here....

We'll never know the reason he died and was not able to make it back into that boat....we can only speculate....
perhaps it was panic...
maybe he got a slight heart attack, and the anxiety of being in that bad situation pushed him over the edge, and that was the end of his life......

I just wanted to extend my heartfelt sympathies to the family and friends of Mr Ortega.

Since I was in a very similar situation, a few years ago, at the exact same rockpile....maybe it is a little personal to me....there have been times out there where I should have died, but didn't.....I have been in situations worse than that. bad mishaps in other areas.....and somehow managed to live through them.....some cases it was my clear headedness....but in others, it was sheer luck....and I feel very lucky to be alive today...with all the crazy things I have tried at night to get closer to where the fish are....

Almost like God doesn't want me yet....I do know that could change at any moment.....as it could for any of us....
So let's be careful out there at night...especially if you fish alone as I do most of the times.....
You don't want that fatality report to be about YOU...think of the impact it would have on your family or loved ones.....

Thanks for reading...and deepest condolences to the Family and friends....

[hookset]

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[vpass]

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