Off-duty JFRD firefighter rescues 3 capsized boaters off Big Talbot Island

An off-duty Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department firefighter turned a birthday outing into a life-saving mission Saturday, swimming out to rescue three boaters clinging to their overturned vessel off Big Talbot Island.Firefighter Otto Scherick was celebrating his girlfriend’s birthday with a walk along a trail to the beach when he heard screaming. JFRD says he sprinted to the shoreline and spotted the boaters waving for help from their capsized boat offshore.Scherick swam out to reach them. Sizing up the current and conditions, he determined the group’s best option was to swim back to shore. With no life jackets on board, he disconnected the boat’s gas tank to use as a makeshift flotation device and guided the boaters toward land. A bystander also swam out and stayed with the group the entire way in.The first call came in at approximately 10:47 a.m. Callers estimated the boaters were as far as 800 yards from shore. By 11:14 a.m. — just 27 minutes later — all three were safely back o