Update: Woman ‘expected to make a full recovery’ after becoming impaled on mooring anchor

Update (11:50 a.m.): First responders say a 58-year-old Babylon woman who was impaled on a mushroom mooring anchor in the Peconic Bay off Nassau Point in Cutchogue Tuesday is expected to make a full recovery.

The woman was injured when she fell off her paddleboard and became impaled on the mooring anchor that was submerged beneath the water’s surface approximately 50 feet from shore, according to Southold Town police, which responded to the distress call around 6:50 p.m.

The woman was in the water, being supported by a paddleboard and bystanders, when the Cutchogue Fire Department arrived on the scene. A Southold Town police officer was the first to enter the water to assess the situation and begin treating the woman, according to the Cutchogue Fire Department. 

The officer discovered that the top of the mushroom-type mooring anchor, which is commonly used to secure boats, had penetrated the upper part of the woman’s thigh when she fell, the CFD stated. 

Both the anchor and woman’s leg were below the water’s surface. But due to the anchor’s weight and nature of the injury, she could not be moved. This, according to the fire department, ruled out the uses of some conventional approaches — such as electric tools or a cutting torch — that could otherwise be used in such situations. 

Firefighters transported their tools down a bluff to the beach to aid the rescue. They used bolt cutters to cut away the chain and attempt to cut the upper portion of the anchor. However, they quickly discovered that the anchor was made of two-inch-round hardened steel and would require more powerful equipment, according to the CFD. 

Firefighters then turned to hydraulic rescue tools, known as the “jaws of life.” A portable gasoline-powered unit with hoses and a cutter were floated out to the woman on a paddleboard that was available on the beach, the department said. 

After approximately one hour, using a combination of handsaws and battery-operated reciprocating saws, rescuers were able to safely remove the woman from the water.

She was transported by a fire department boat to the New Suffolk boat ramp, then transferred to an ambulance for transport to a waiting Suffolk County police helicopter, which flew her to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment, police said.

Officials at the hospital didn’t return calls requesting an update on the woman’s condition. However, the Cutchogue Fire Department wrote in statement that “… due to the efforts and teamwork of everyone involved, the patient received the best care possible and is expected to make a full recovery.”

Original story (8 a.m.): A 58-year-old Babylon woman was rescued Tuesday night after becoming impaled on a mushroom mooring anchor in the Peconic Bay off Nassau Point in Cutchogue. The woman was injured when she fell off her paddleboard and became impaled on the mooring anchor that was submerged beneath the surface of the water approximately 50 feet from shore, according to Southold Town Police, which responded to the distress call around 6:50 p.m.

The woman suffered a leg injury that required Cutchogue Fire Department firefighters to utilize extrication tools to remove her from the water, police said. She was transported by Cutchogue Fire Department Boat to the New Suffolk boat ramp where she was transferred to an ambulance for transport to a waiting Suffolk County Police helicopter that flew her to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment, police said.

The extent of the injuries was not immediately clear.

Additional information was not yet available.

Photo caption: The Cutchogue Fire Department and Southold Police rescued the woman who was injured after falling off a paddleboard Tuesday night. (Cutchogue Fire Department courtesy photo)