10 people safe after second boat sinks at Lake Mead

By Mary Manning

Friday, Aug. 7, 2009 | 10:58 a.m.

Ten people made it to shore safely Thursday night after a second boat sank into Lake Mead's wind-tossed waters about 9:30 p.m., the National Park Service said.

The boat went down between Callville Bay and Sandy Cove in the northwestern part of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, which had been buffeted by winds all day, said Andrew Munoz, a spokesman for the National Park Service.

Park rangers received a call from Metro Police about 9:32 p.m., Munoz said. All 10 people, who were from Los Angeles, were in park service boats by 11:42 p.m. Thursday, he said.

The people left Callville Bay Marina in a 23-foot-long 2001 Larson pleasure craft and immediately began taking on water, Munoz said. The boat operator and passengers were able to reach a beach in the Sandy Cove area before the boat sank, he said.

Winds had been gusty all day, churning the lake's surface into waves 4 to 5 feet high. Winds were still gusting over 30 mph and did not die down until around midnight, Munoz said.

Earlier Thursday afternoon, a woman in her 60s was injured as a family of six from Bakersfield, Calif., was pulled from the lake after a boat sank near Castle Cove, which is on the Arizona side of Lake Mead across from Boulder Beach, Munoz said.

The six people were in the water for more than an hour before park service rangers and Las Vegas Marina staff were able to rescue them. All wore life jackets, Munoz said.

The injured woman suffered minor lacerations and the rest of the family suffered fatigue from their time in the water.

The park service has had to rescue out-of-state visitors from Lake Mead more often than local boaters, Munoz said. "The locals know the conditions," he said, referring to gusty winds, choppy waters and continuing lower lake levels as a 10-year drought continues.