The coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico where Jimmy was reported lost are among the busiest there are. Here's a map showing the shipping activity on that fateful night, and where Captain John Henry Thibodeau of the Miss Rosie Mae indicates about where Jimmy went over the side. If you'd seen a 16 year-old Jimmy come to a fair damsel's rescue and tow a capsized Butterfly sailboat a 1/2 mile to shore with a line in his teeth, you would perhaps understand why we still hold out hope. Not far from where Jimmy went over the side that night two or three pleasure yachts were in the area, making their way to Mexico. Oil platforms are nearby too, and all kinds of fishing vessels, legal and otherwise. Who's to say he didn't swim to safety in his leisurely fashion, been picked up, and then signed on as able-bodied seaman, none the worse for wear? So we're still looking...
