The operator of a pontoon boat that had to be pulled out of Mobile Bay during storms on Tuesday was being reckless and did not have a license to operate the vessel, authorities said Thursday.

David J. Russell, 55, of Mobile, was charged with reckless operation and no vessel license, said Sgt. Jeremy Burkett with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.

The pontoon boat has also been removed from the shoreline in wake of the charges, Burkett said.

Troopers with ALEA’s Marine Patrol Division were dispatched to assist a man and a woman on the pontoon boat which had been stranded on the jetties in Mobile Bay near the Buccaneer Yacht Club about 1:52 a.m. Tuesday.

At that time, there was a 17 mph wind out of the south, with gusts up to 35 mph and a thunderstorm in the area, according to the National Weather Service.

As the troopers were in route to the stranded boaters, the boat broke free and drifted into the shore, where the two boaters were assisted by the Marine Patrol.

The two people rescued were identified as Russell and 44-year-old Sabrina M. Breganza of Wilmer.

ALEA did not indicate whether either of the two were injured and no other details were released.