Nick Schuyler's Survival Story
PAGE 12
Through the day, Nick and Will saw helicopters in the far distance and did what they could to try and attract their attention. Tragically, they were no match for Mother Nature. Despite the 14-foot waves, Will managed to dive back under the boat and found one bottle of Gatorade and a plastic bag of pretzels.
Around 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nick realized an exhausted Will was beginning to slip away. "I had already had two guys die—one in my arms. I was in the middle of witnessing my best friend do the same," he says. "I was begging, 'God, please help.'"
Like Marquis and Corey, Nick says Will began to lose control of his body. Instead of becoming aggressive, Nick says Will just became completely defenseless. "[Earlier], we would fight the waves," he says. "There was a point where Will wasn't giving me anything."
The waves continued to batter the best friends, pulling them off the boat and into the cold, churning water. After awhile, Nick says Will could no longer pull himself back on the boat. "He didn't have the strength," he says. "I'm sitting here trying to pull up a 225-pound man with not a whole lot of leverage."
Then, Will lost his life jacket. "He went in [the water] one time, and his jacket [shot] up. It kind of choked him," Nick says. "His first reaction was, 'I'm going to take the jacket off.' So he took the jacket off, and within a few seconds that thing was yards away. I thought about going to get the jacket, but then I'd have to leave Will, jacketless, alone."
Around 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nick realized an exhausted Will was beginning to slip away. "I had already had two guys die—one in my arms. I was in the middle of witnessing my best friend do the same," he says. "I was begging, 'God, please help.'"
Like Marquis and Corey, Nick says Will began to lose control of his body. Instead of becoming aggressive, Nick says Will just became completely defenseless. "[Earlier], we would fight the waves," he says. "There was a point where Will wasn't giving me anything."
The waves continued to batter the best friends, pulling them off the boat and into the cold, churning water. After awhile, Nick says Will could no longer pull himself back on the boat. "He didn't have the strength," he says. "I'm sitting here trying to pull up a 225-pound man with not a whole lot of leverage."
Then, Will lost his life jacket. "He went in [the water] one time, and his jacket [shot] up. It kind of choked him," Nick says. "His first reaction was, 'I'm going to take the jacket off.' So he took the jacket off, and within a few seconds that thing was yards away. I thought about going to get the jacket, but then I'd have to leave Will, jacketless, alone."
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