Lowell Brentner

Captain Lowell Brentner, while at the helm of his tugboat "Ocean Star" and after receiving a radio distress call, was the first responder to attempt to save the lives of the 58 passengers on board National Airlines Flight 193 when it landed in Escambia Bay on May 8, 1978. The airliner was a Boeing 727, and nicknamed "Donna". It's unscheduled nighttime landing, in twelve feet of water due to pilot error and low visibility on a foggy night, resulted in the loss of three lives. The Ocean Star was owned by Inland River Transportation, a local company.

Captain Brentner, a resident of Scenic Heights, was 83 years old when he died on June 10, 2005.