| FTBL Former Bama player and Sylacauga coach, Chris Smelley, missing at sea. [Update: Found safe by USCG]

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

That doesn't sound good but I hope he's ok.

 

[UAgrad93]

Praying for his safe return and for his wife and kids. The city of Sylacauga has really grown to love them and his team loves him too.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

A great update…

 

[TideatMileHigh]

It was only a three hour ocean tour...

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

He’s a braver man than me, zero chance I go out without a lifejacket or a cell phone. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t go out there alone period. But glad this turned out well. It’s a rare good ending in these situations.

‘I was at the mercy of the wind’: Chris Smelley talks about his ordeal in the Gulf of Mexico

Chris Smelley joined Mike Dubberly on Good Day Alabama Extra to detail his 11-hour ordeal of being stranded in the Gulf of Mexico.

www.wbrc.com

 

[TerryP]

He’s a braver man than me, zero chance I go out without a lifejacket or a cell phone. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t go out there alone period. But glad this turned out well. It’s a rare good ending in these situations.

‘I was at the mercy of the wind’: Chris Smelley talks about his ordeal in the Gulf of Mexico

Chris Smelley joined Mike Dubberly on Good Day Alabama Extra to detail his 11-hour ordeal of being stranded in the Gulf of Mexico.

www.wbrc.com

 

[RTB Twitter Bot]

 

[UAgrad93]

A friend of his owns Harbor Docks Restaurant there. It was his friends boat they transported to and carried him back to shore. While getting some much needed nourishment there at the restaurant, the basketball game came on so they stayed until the end!! RTR!!

 

[TerryP]

It was his friends

This whole story has hit close to home.

When I was in Tuscaloosa I worked for Bart for awhile. Chris, and Brad, were barely teens then but I can remember them running around the offices and warehouse.

Just over 15 years ago another two friends (married couples) had the same thing happen to their sons just off the coast. They were fishing (shark, for god's sake, but that's another story) and got caught in a riptide.

It goes to show how quickly these things can go wrong. Josh and Tony were 20-25 yards off the shore on Sullivan's Island when they were caught up ... six days later found, 100 miles north off the coast of North Carolina. I remember Josh losing almost 40 lbs in six days.

I was at a local church, Cathedral of Praise, for a vigil / support type meeting for family and friends when they got the call from the USCG their boys had been found. Surreal experience.

I could probably, easily, find reports: it was circa spring of 2005.