Dramatic maritime rescue on Lake Huron

Fred Wondergem was captaining a fishing charter Saturday afternoon on Lake Huron when a distress call came over the maritime radio.

“As soon as that call came in, we’re obligated to assist. And there was lots of boats out there but we knew we were only a few minutes away and I have a boat that is fairly quick,” Wondergem said.

Fishing lines were pulled, and they raced to the location of the vessel in distress, located between Ipperwash Beach and Kettle Point, 500 metres from the shore.

What they found was a boat rapidly taking on water.

“He was only in nine feet of water at that point, but with the water being so cold, hypothermia would set in so quickly,” he said.

Wondergem and two other boats that responded quickly hastened the people aboard their vessels to safety, and within minutes the boat had sunk.

The owner explained to Wondergem what happened.

“They obviously had some sort of mechanical issue with the boat. The boat began taking on water and as a result it stalled the engine,” he said.

Everyone is safe because of the action of the boats in the area, but it was one key piece of equipment that according to Wondergem, saved lives that day.

“Having a marine radio saved these people, because they were able to make that call,” he said.

The boat will have to be salvaged, and a buoy was tied to the boat so other boaters don`t accidently collide with it in the meantime.