Larry T. Allison attempted to save Teresa Cooney from drowning, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, January 14, 1970. When a motorboat capsized in the Atlantic Ocean in deep water 1,000 feet from shore, Mrs. Cooney, 62, was knocked unconscious and trapped beneath the overturned craft in an air pocket. Her husband was caught in a rope ring attached to the boat’s bow but was aided in holding to the capsized craft by another man. Allison, 18, sprinkler installer, and a college student noted the situation from shore and entered the water to give aid. They swam through six to eight-foot swells and were fatigued when they reached the capsized craft. The student, with help, freed Mrs. Cooney’s husband and then supported him alongside the boat. Holding to the craft, which was rocked considerably by the swells, Allison submerged and probed beneath the boat for Mrs. Cooney. Occasionally surfacing for air, he moved along the sides of the craft and continued searching but failed to find her. A Coast Guard cutter arrived; and when the over turned boat was towed to shore, Mrs. Cooney was found beneath it. She was revived.
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