About 10AM, February 29, Del Norte County maintenance workers observed a male, lying down at the peninsula at the Mouth of the Smith River.He raised his hand and gestured he was in distress. A 9-1-1 call was made. Sheriff Garrett Scott and Deputy Dylan Balch, along with two members of Search and Rescue (SAR) and a Crescent Fire Protection District unit, Norte Ambulance Del responded. With the newly acquired Polaris UTV enclosed vehicle, SAR entered the Beach from Kellogg Beach Rd, and drove several miles north to the Mouth where they observed a distressed individual, colored blue, dressed only in a t-shirt and shorts, lying face down, and suffering what appeared to be hypothermia.#placement_573654_0_i{width:100%;max-width:550px;margin:0 auto;}var rnd = window.rnd || Math.floor(Math.random()*10e6);var pid573654 = window.pid573654 || rnd;var plc573654 = window.plc573654 || 0;var abkw = window.abkw || '';var absrc = 'https://ads.empowerlocal.co/adserve/;ID=181918;size=0x0;setID=573654;type=js;sw='+screen.width+';sh='+screen.height+';spr='+window.devicePixelRatio+';kw='+abkw+';pid='+pid573654+';place='+(plc573654++)+';rnd='+rnd+';click=CLICK_MACRO_PLACEHOLDER';var _absrc = absrc.split("type=js"); absrc = _absrc[0] + 'type=js;referrer=' + encodeURIComponent(document.location.href) + _absrc[1];document.write('');The man reportedly walked the approximate 11 miles from Point St. George Beach in stormy weather. Upon arrival by SAR, the individual was expediently wrapped in a blanket, placed in the UTV, and rushed back to Kellogg Rd where Del Norte Ambulance transferred the unidentified individual to Sutter Coast, where he made a full recovery.As a side note, the Sheriff told The Triplicate The purchase of the Polaris UTV was made possible with funds from the asset forfeiture drug bust, last February, 2023. The total forfeiture was $375,000. The Sheriff Dept. share of the drug bust was estimated to be just under $250,000. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('ad-1515727'); });