Cape Cod Near-Drowning: Good Samaritans Save Life

YARMOUTH, MA — A Cape Cod man who fell into the frigid ocean at Skippy’s Pier 1 Marina in Yarmouth Thursday morning was rescued by two Good Samaritans, police said. The man was checking on a boat on the marina docks when he slipped on ice and tumbled into the water. Temperatures at the time were around zero degrees.

The man screamed for help and an off-duty firefighter staying at the nearby River View Resort heard the man, police said. The firefighter and front-desk clerk ran out and pulled the man from the water. The man was expected to be OK.

The firefighter was identified as William Pagan Jr., 43, of Lawrence. The front-desk clerk was identified as Nicholas Spignese, 25, of Yarmouth.

Pagan "heard the screams for help and looked out the balcony of his room and observed a subject in the water," Yarmouth police said in a statement. "Mr. Pagan advised the clerk at the front desk who called 911 to report the incident. Together, both parties ran over to the marina and pulled (the man) from the water."

Police added, "The Yarmouth Police Department highly commends everyone involved in this rescue in such frigid conditions — especially Lawrence Firefighter Pagan Jr. and Desk Clerk Spignese — their actions are exemplary and saved a man's life."

Lead photo credit: Michael Dwyer/Associated Press/File