Tangled in Red Tape, Government Workers Look on as Boy Drowns

11 May, 2011 by Dave Blount

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If you’re in danger of drowning, hope that there’s someone around to save you who doesn’t work for the government. From Everett, Washington:

Witnesses say 13-year-old Austin Anglin was trapped underneath his family’s boat for about 40 agonizing minutes before Coast Guard crews pulled him out of the water. For at least some of that time boats from several agencies could do little more than sit and watch, frustrating his helpless loved ones.

“I looked over at the game warden’s boat and there were four people standing there in life jackets on the edge of the boat as I was telling them there’s a boy under the boat,” said Tony Edwards. “They did absolutely nothing.”

The two other agencies on the water, Tulalip Fire and Washington Fish & Wildlife did not have divers on board their boats.

The Everett Police Department’s Marine Unit — including two divers — was on the scene, but they didn’t go into the water because they did not have dive gear, nor rescue training.

No doubt their union contract forbids getting wet without their dive gear.

Everett Police refused an on-camera interview but told us their marine unit is not a search and rescue team. It’s a search and recovery unit.

So naturally they had to wait to be sure the boy was dead, so they could recover him.

Also, on Saturday the team was working an “enforcement detail,” meaning they were out to write tickets as boating season kicked off around Puget Sound.

Too bad no one thought to tell them that Austin was drowning without a license. They would have pulled him up to write him a ticket.

This mentality will now be imposed in hospitals, as Big Government consolidates control over the healthcare system.

On a tip from Muddypaw. Cross-posted at Moonbattery.