APALACHICOLA - A fisherman treaded water in the Gulf of Mexico for 18 hours and stuffed his clothing with seaweed in an effort to remain buoyant before being rescued.
Robert Graham, 62, remained at Bay Medical Center in Panama City on Saturday, said a hospital spokeswoman who would not give details on the man's condition, but said he was stable.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Phillip Wilson told the News-Herald of Panama City that Graham was in guarded condition on Friday, but expected to fully recover.
"He was hypothermic," Wilson said. "His blood pressure was barely there. His pulse was barely there."
Graham was rescued about 18 miles offshore Friday by another fishing boat, then airlifted to the hospital.
Graham was a crew member on a fishing boat and fell off the side of that vessel on Thursday afternoon, according to the Coast Guard. No one aboard Graham's ship was aware he was missing until Friday morning, prompting a large search party to be formed.
Rescuers could see Graham emptying his pockets of the seaweed after they found him. Graham was not wearing a life jacket and the seaweed may have saved his life, officials said.
Officials confirm two cases of encephalitis
PANAMA CITY - Health officials confirmed another case of eastern equine encephalitis in Bay County, bringing the number of statewide cases to two.
A 3-year-old Orange County girl and a Bay County resident have been infected with the disease, officials said Friday.
The two are thought to be Florida's first cases of eastern equine encephalitis this year and perhaps only the second and third nationally. The mosquito-borne virus rarely strikes humans.
State officials would not release the 3-year-old's identity or condition, but acknowledged she remains hospitalized with the disease. Her case dovetails that of the Bay County resident, who spent six days in the hospital. The Bay County Health Department would only say THE person has been released.
The disease kills up to half of the people who contract it, compared with about 10 percent who die after becoming infected with West Nile virus.
