CLEVELAND — The Coast Guard rescued two people from an aground vessel, early Thursday morning, from Lake Calumet in Chicago.
Shortly after midnight, a radio watchstander at Coast Guard Station Calumet Harbor, Chicago, received a call for help via a VHF-FM marine radio on channel 16 from two people whose boat was taking on water after running aground.
A rescue boatcrew, aboard a 25-foot Response Boat-Small, responded to the call for help and arrived on scene at 1:27 a.m. The water was too shallow for the rescue crew to get to the boaters, so the crew launched a skiff boat from the RB-S. Fireman John Metes, a rescue crewmember, paddled over to the boaters, assisted one of them onto the skiff and transported them to the RB-S. Then, Petty Officer 3rd Class Timothy Morley, another rescue crewmember, paddled back over to the remaining boater, assisted he onto the skiff and transported them to the RB-S. The RB-S then transported the two rescued individuals to Hammond Marina, Chicago, at 2:59 a.m.
“The rescued individuals did the right thing by notifying the Coast Guard on VHF-FM radio channel 16 as soon as they ran aground,” said Cmdr. Erik Leuenberger, Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan Response Department chief. “A chain of events are initiated once the Coast Guard receives an initial distress call allowing for a higher chance of survival.”
A crew from Tow Boat U.S. will conduct the salvage of the aground vessel.
No injuries were reported.
The Coast Guard received an initial report from these boaters at 8:15 p.m., Wednesday night, but from initial reports it was deemed that the boaters were not in distress. Upon the second call for help, Station Calumet Harbor assisted the newly distressed boaters.
