ASHTABULA —
A rescue crew from Coast Guard Station Ashtabula and a nearby boater rescued three people in Lake Erie Friday afternoon when their 21-foot recreational boat began taking on water about 12 miles northwest of Ashtabula.
The three boaters were not wearing life jackets, and were treated by emergency medical personnel at the Ashtabula Harbor dock. They were transported by ambulance to Ashtabula County Medical Center.
Coast Guard Station Ashtabula received a call at 12:30 p.m. from a good Samaritan about three boaters in the water clinging to debris after their boat sank. The boaters, two from Pennsylvania and one from Ohio, were fishing when their vessel began taking on water.
The good Samaritan told the Coast Guard he would pick up the boaters and meet its rescue crew halfway — about six nautical miles northwest of Ashtabula.
Coast Guard Ashtabula found the three people showing signs of exhaustion, with one in an unresponsive state.
The three boaters were transferred to the Coast Guard 33-foot Special Purpose Craft and were delivered to the Ashtabula Harbor, where EMS administered aid to them. The people were transported to ACMC, where they were reported to be in stable condition.
The Coast Guard recommends that boaters wear properly fitting life jackets at all times while on the water. According to the Coast Guard’s 2011 Recreational Boating statistics, of 533 drownings, 84 percent were not wearing a life jacket.
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