Beaufort, SC (WSAV). The captain and his 11 passengers on board did what he said that the hundreds of boats on the sandb bar, doing when an intense storm is established, they escaped quickly.
But he said with each landing and dock that he accepted what he called the right decision, but it cost him a night in prison with accusation and disturbance.
“Everyone is safe and reliable. I feel like I made the right decision. If I had to do it again, I would do the same thing 100%,” said Benji Gecy, Beaufort Native and Captain on Saturday, arrested in Beaufort.
Gecy said he and his ship’s passengers experienced all emotions on Saturday.
He said it began as a beautiful day that quickly turned into a life -threatening situation and eventually his arrest.
“About the dead tide, the storm began to produce quite badly. And I saw it,” Gecy said.
So did all the other boats that panic on the water.
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“By the time we got into the boat, there was another problem because there are so many boats and anchors, it took some time to drive off the sandbar,” Gecy said. “There was already a lot of boat flow and I was compressed into an area cut through the canal where my engine struck the bottom.”
As a result of the incident, his engine stopped working and he said they were stretching the bottom for a long time.
This caused additional anxiety to him and the passengers on board, knowing that it would take longer to go to a safe place of dock.
“I looked at the city marina, the boats were everywhere. I didn’t feel like I could make it further to Factory Creek.” I could already see that boats are accumulating in Factory Creek. They beat me there because they could drive faster than me, “Gecy said.
Gecy said that hundreds of boats fleeing caused overflow in all nearby landings, docks and marinas.
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“My daughter started telling me that we had lightning strokes over 600, 800, 1000 feet of boats. So, there was a lot of panic. We had a kid on a boat.”
As passengers feared for their lives, Gecy said his only choice at that moment was the Downtown Beaufort Day dock.
“When we went there, we saw that the ramp was closed and I asked my daughter to go up because we were on a metal boat down in a lightning storm,” Gecy said. “So I asked her to find out if we could survive, and she said we could. So we all got up and we went through it.”
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“The day of the day and the edge of the embankment are clearly marked without any signs of violation. Any ships or seasures that experience emergencies.
Gecy said that all passengers on board were jumping over the fence, and a safe shelter is the only one in their heads.
“You are looking for any violations with such lightning. And you know, panic in the boat. This is not what I was looking for. I tried to find security,” Gecy said. “And I feel like you know, my right as a sailor and captain, I had the right to sniff into that dock. It didn’t matter to me. Even if I saw that I did not see any signs of violations. Even if I saw them, I would still be stolen there because it was my only option.”
Gecy stated that he, his family and other passengers were welcomed by hostility from Water Fest’s employees once in dry land, and eventually police when they were looking for shelter.
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“I was a little disappointed. I saw one of the water festival staff calling the police. He, you know, really upset. Instead of trying to help us, it seemed like he called the cops about our type of arrangement. “When we accepted security, we were attacked in a restaurant and hunted. They had to watch their father was arrested.”
Gecy was at the Lost Locals restaurant with its family members, eating lunch when the storm passed. That’s where he said, the police arrested him.
After the arrest Gecy, he said he had gone to the city to try a compromise by paying for a ticket violation in exchange for decreasing accusations and disturbances. He said they had refused.
“I try to compromise and move on. It was a pathetic event for police officers, my family, the restaurant owner and that they take this position, I just think it is unfounded,” Gecy said.
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