A sea of Good Samaritans came to the aid of a man whose boat capsized in the Sound, about 200 feet off the shore in front of Greenport’s Soundview Inn this afternoon.
Southold Town Police responded to the call, which came in just after 2 p.m., about a stranded fisherman whose small vessel had capsized; police said a kayaker was seen coming to the man’s aid.
According to Greenport resident Haykuhl Bashlan, who lives on the Sound, she saw signs of the man in distress.
“People were screaming at the Soundview,” she said.
Bashlan hurried right out onto her own kayak to try and help the man; when her brother, Vrenj Copuroglulari, saw his sister in distress, he headed to the rescue on his own kayak.
“My brother came to save me,” she said.
Bashlan came back to shore while Copuroglulari tied the boat to his kayak and began towing the vessel and the fisherman, who remains unidentified, to shore. The fisherman, who was a guest of one of Bashlan’s neighbors, remained clinging to the side of his boat, frantically bailing out water during the rescue.
Southold Town Police and Greenport Fire Department rescue responded to the scene.
At the same time, another concerned kayaker also headed out to help, but turned back when it was clear the situation was under control.
All ended well when both the boater and the kayaker returned safely to shore, both vessels also intact. Copuroglulari continued bailing water out of the boat even when back on the beach.
When told he was a hero by a bystander, Copuroglulai shook his head modestly. “I’m a fisherman,” he said. “I’m okay. I was helping.”
