‘To God be the Glory’: Captain of a Capsized Boat Risks Own Life to Save Crewman’s

By Nancy Flory Published on July 28, 2017

The captain of an Alaskan commercial fishing boat risked his life to save a crewman in frigid 47-degree waters after their boat capsized near Kodiak Island.

Captain Christian Trosvig and his crew of three men were fishing for salmon Monday when their boat, The Grayling, began taking on water, reported the Alaska Dispatch News.

Dale Pruitt, captain of the Calista Marie, was fishing nearby. Pruitt noticed that the stern of The Grayling was sinking. “So I went over there and asked what was going on,” Pruitt said in a phone interview Tuesday. “And he goes, ‘I can’t get the water out.’”

Pruitt began towing the boat to shore, but suddenly The Grayling rolled over, tossing the four men into the choppy seas. “So my skiff let go of them and started picking up people,” said Pruitt.

A Coast Guard helicopter was called in to help.

The Calista Marie picked up one person while Trosvig and another crewman climbed aboard The Calista Marie. But one man was still missing. “That was a scary moment,” Pruitt said.

After about 20 minutes, the crew member surfaced and Captain Trosvig immediately jumped back into the icy waters. Pruitt said Trosvig was a hero. “He saved that guy’s life. Chris swam over there, grabbed him, pulled him into the skiff and gave him CPR for probably five minutes. That revived him.”

The Coast Guard arrived in time to see Trosvig jump back in the water and save his crew member. The rescue was captured on a Coast Guard video camera.

Trosvig’s act of bravery and selflessness is reminiscent of 1 John 3:16-17:

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?

In a Tuesday Facebook post, Trosvig explained his actions. He’d lost his twin brother to the sea. “It was not going to happen again,” he wrote. “To God be the glory for giving me courage and strength to get my man out of the water and bring him back to life.”