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 Clark said he was headed out into the Gulf of Mexico to go fishing Saturday night when the wake of a passing fishing vessel swamped his 16-foot boat.
"It was like the whole ocean came in on me. Within a matter of seconds, my boat went down," Clark, 43, said in a telephone interview Tuesday from his hospital bed at Seven Rivers Regional Medical Center in Crystal River.
He was listed in good condition and was awaiting release from the hospital.
He was about 16 miles off Yankeetown when four fishermen from Leesburg heard his cries for help and saw his overturned boat at about noon Sunday, said the Coast Guard and the Levy County Sheriff's Office.
Clark, of Homosassa, said he was bruised and sore from holding onto his boat, had burns on his legs caused by exposure to gasoline which leaked out of his outboard engine, and he had several jellyfish stings.
Clark said he visualized the face of his 6-year-old daughter, Lauryn, as the hours dragged by.
"She means the world to me," he said.
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The Coast Guard said the water's temperature would have been 59 to
63 degrees that night. Rescuers gave Clark dry clothing and water
and soda to drink.
"He was pretty much frozen. His body was, like, quaking. It was a
little while before he could say a word," one of his rescuers, James
Selsor, 36, told The Gainesville Sun.
Clark said he had been fishing many times in the area and never
had any trouble.
"All in all, it was one hell of an experience and I'm glad to be
alive," he said.
He plans to fix up his boat and sell it.
[Associated
Press; By RON WORD]
Copyright 2007 The Associated
Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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