1 injured, 6 rescued after boat sinks at Lake Mead

By Mary Manning

Published Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009 | 3:19 p.m.

Updated Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009 | 6:20 p.m.

A woman was injured as a family of six from Bakersfield, Calif., was pulled from Lake Mead this afternoon after a boat sank in choppy waters from gusty winds.

The woman, who was in her 60s, had minor injuries, suffering lacerations and fatigue after being in the water for more than an hour.

The National Park Service sent rangers to pull all six people from the waters near Castle Cove, which is on the Arizona side of Lake Mead, across the lake from Boulder Beach, said Andrew Munoz, spokesman for the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

"They were lucky," Munoz said. "They were able to get life jackets on and that's what saved their lives."

A jet skier went to the Las Vegas Boat Harbor about 2:15 p.m. Thursday, alerting authorities to the accident, Munoz said. Harbor personnel notified the Park Service.

Rangers arrived at the scene and found six people in the water, which swelled between 3 and 4 feet in high winds, Munoz said. The boat was between 20 and 25 feet long, Munoz said.

The injured woman had to be strapped onto a plastic backboard. All of the other boat passengers were pulled from the water.

An ambulance waited at a launch ramp in Hemenway Harbor for the injured person, Munoz said. The injured woman arrived at the ramp shortly before 4 p.m. and was taken to a hospital.

A spokeswoman at the boat harbor said waves up to 5 feet tall were roiling the waters near the harbor. Harbor staff had been warning boaters with posted notices and by word of mouth about the high winds expected to last until 9 p.m. Thursday night, she said.

Winds were blowing from 20 to 35 mph with gusts from 45 to 50 mph on the lake this afternoon, said Brian Fuis, a meteorologist from the National Weather Service.

The National Park Service urges boaters to check the weather before heading out onto the lake, Munoz said. Weather reports are available on the park's information radio station on AM 1610.

CORRECTION: This story was changed to correct that the injured woman wasn't struck by the boat's propeller, as was originally reported. The Sun regrets the error. | (August 7, 2009)