KENNEWICK, Wash. - Dale Adkins and Cathy Scott were shocked but very grateful when a random boat stopped to help. In the chaos, they didn't catch the names of the good samaritans. But when the couple stopped by KNDU they were hoping to find out who the family was so they could properly thank them and give them back their rope and boat float.
"Terrifying," Scott said as she described the incident. "I've never been stranded on a boat before. I've heard people talk about it but when you go through it, it's really scary out there."
Trying to soak up the last bit of summer fun, Dale and Cathy set out around four o'clock Tuesday for a cruise along the Columbia River. But that wind storm that blew through the Tri-Cities hit before they made it back.
"I was having a heck of a time trying to keep it straight and the wind blew us over into the sandbar. I didn't even think the sandbar was that far out. We weren't even close to the shore," Adkins said.
After several failed attempts to push the boat off the sandbar themselves, Dale and Cathy called 911.
"This other boat showed up first and tried to pull us off and they threw us a boat float and a rope, they tried to get us off and they almost got stuck, too," he said.
The good samaritans eventually cut the rope and went into deeper water. They waited for hours, though, with Dale and Cathy until a Benton County Sheriff's boat arrived.
"We were shivering so bad when they finally rescued us. They gave me a coat, a heavy one, and I was still shivering because we were out there for so long," Scott said.
"There's not that many people realistically that would do that. So they were kind of extraordinary," Adkins said.
NBC Right Now posted a photo on Facebook on Friday of the good samaritans' rope and float they left behind and it didn't take long for the owners to get in contact. NBC Right Now got back to them and let them know how to get a hold of Dale and Cathy so could possibly thank them properly and give them their things.
