Sailor rescued after 14 hours in Lake Ontario
Sailboat left Niagara-on-the-Lake; man clung to dinghy awaiting help
A sailor spent an estimated 14 hours clinging to an overturned dinghy in the cold waters of Lake Ontario before being rescued over the weekend.
Carol Launderville, a spokesperson for the Canadian Coast Guard, said the Coast Guard was notified Friday evening that a man sailing his 40-foot sailboat from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Mimico in Toronto was overdue at his destination.
She said the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre at CFB Trenton launched a search that included a CC-130 Hercules aircraft and CH-146 Griffon helicopter.
The Cape Storm Coast Guard crew using a fast rescue craft from its Port Weller base and Coast Guard auxiliary units from Toronto, Pickering (PARU), Oakville (TOWARF) and Grimsby (GAMRU), were also launched and sent to search for the man.
The Coast Guard’s marine communications and traffic services centre in Prescott issued urgent broadcasts and handled communications throughout the case, she said.
“Shortly after the search began a Coast Guard auxiliary unit located the vessel, adrift with no persons on board. The sailboat was without its dinghy.”
About 2 a.m. Saturday, the helicopter crew from CFB Trenton spotted the man, and the Coast Guard’s Port Weller crew using its fast rescue craft proceeded to the location.
“The man was conscious but suffering from hypothermia. He was wearing a life-jacket which rescuers attribute to assisting in his survival. He was taken to the Port Weller
Coast Guard station where an ambulance was waiting,” she said, adding the man was dressed for the weather in terms of layers.
Launderville said waterways still remain very cold at this time of year and take much longer to warm up compared to the air.
“The coast guard urges boaters to make sure they have enough approved life-jackets on board the vessel for every passenger, and that they’re easily accessible. Don’t store them underneath a seat or below deck. Better yet, wear them. Donning a life-jacket is much harder once you’re in the water, especially if you’re injured.”
Emergencies on the water can be reported 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, toll-free (within Canada) at 1-800-267-7270, via marine VHF radio — channel 16 or *16 on a cellphone.
‘‘ “He was wearing a life-jacket which rescuers attribute to assisting in his survival.”
CAROL LAUNDERVILLE spokesperson for the Canadian Coast Guard