Three people rescued from jetty where Jose Fernandez died, officials say

Three people were rescued Friday night from the same rocky jetty where Marlins star pitcher Jose Fernandez died in a boat crash in 2016, fire officials say.

The boaters were navigating the waters at around 9:15 p.m. Somehow, they got stranded on the west rocks of the jetty — also known as Government Cut. The man-made shipping channel sits between Miami Beach and Fisher Island.

"When the fireboat crew arrived, they found a vessel and its three occupants," said Miami-Dade Fire Rescue spokeswoman Kirsten Miller. "Due to precarious conditions of the boat and the strong current, firefighters had to deploy a rescue swimmer off the fireboat and onto the rocks in order to assist all three boaters into the water onto the safety of the fireboat."

Officials say all three boaters were medically checked and then taken to the Coast Guard base in Miami Beach. Only one of the three was treated and transported to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The other two suffered minor cuts and bruises.

"Miami-Dade Fire Rescue reminds everyone that boating at night should only be done by expert navigators," Miller said. "It is important to make sure you have the appropriate safety equipment anytime you go out on the water. Slow down and never drink alcohol if you are operating a boat."

It is unclear if the incident involved any alcohol.

Fernandez, 24, was legally drunk and had cocaine in his system when he died in a boat wreck off South Beach on Sept. 25, 2016, a toxicology report showed. His family’s attorney says he was not piloting the vessel when it crashed.

This story was originally published April 14, 2018 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Three people rescued from jetty where Jose Fernandez died, officials say."