CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard rescued two boaters from a boat taking on water, Saturday afternoon, in Lake Ontario in the vicinity of Stony Point, N.Y.
At 1:40 p.m., a rescue boatcrew aboard a 25-foot Response Boat-Small, from Coast Guard Station Sackets Harbor, N.Y., responded to a mayday call from a boat taking on water. The boatcrew diverted from routine operations and responded to the mayday and spoke with the boaters on the radio to obtain their location.
The rescue boatcrew arrived on scene at 1:52 p.m. and pulled alongside the 22-foot Bayliner, which was listing. Petty Officer 2nd Class Garrett Hodgson and Petty Officer 2nd Class Jimmy Stefanidis, both machinery technicians, went aboard the listing boat and immediately started pumping water off the boat with hand pumps.
“The boat was listing heavily to port and with no hesitation those two petty officers took charge of a quickly deteriorating situation,” said Chief Petty Officer Josh Martin, officer-in-charge of Station Sackets Harbor and the coxswain of the RB-S. “We could visually see the progress that the two of them were making by watching the lettering on the boat raise out of the water.”
The rescue crew was able to keep up with the flow of water coming in from the engine compartment and the boatcrew towed the vessel to Mariner Marina in Henderson, N.Y. The rescue crew also helped the boaters take the boat completely out of the water and onto a trailer in order to prevent it from sinking at the dock.
Both boaters were wearing their life jackets and were able to get help because they were prepared with a VHF marine radio. The Coast Guard reminds all boaters to be prepared in case of an emergency by ensuring that everyone aboard is wearing a life jacket or has quick access to a life jacket.
