(WWJ) A father and son are recovering in the hospital after being rescued from the frigid waters of Lake St. Clair during a sailboat race setup.
According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the pair were offshore of Grosse Pointe on Saturday morning, setting up a buoy course for the race, when a line tangled around their boat's propeller.
The father jumped into the water to clear the propeller but found himself unable to climb back aboard.
At around 8:30 a.m., his adult son called 911 for help.
While still on the phone with Macomb County dispatchers, the son fell into the water and couldn't get back onto the boat.
Dispatchers with the DNR's Report All Poaching Hotline worked alongside local dispatch to pinpoint the stranded boaters about 3 miles offshore from the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club.
Water temperatures were in the low 60s, with air temperatures lingering in the 50s.
Rescue crews arrived at the scene around 9:30 a.m. DNR Conservation Officers Kris Kiel and Brad Silorey pulled the father onto their patrol boat and immediately began treating him for hypothermia. Simultaneously, a U.S. Coast Guard crew arrived and pulled the son aboard their vessel.
Both men were brought ashore to the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and rushed to a local hospital by waiting medics.
“We are thankful that our conservation officers, in partnership with the U.S. Coast Guard and help from our DNR dispatchers, were able to locate this father-son duo and safely return them to shore,” said Chief Brandon Kieft, of the DNR Law Enforcement Division. “Our thoughts are with them and we all are hoping the best for their recovery. We urge all boaters to keep in mind that water temperatures are becoming dangerously cold and to take proper safety precautions when boating during the fall.”
There is no update on the men's conditions at this time,
Boating safety tips are available on the DNR website at this link.
