Aug. 9, 2024

Lt. Joseph Snyder

906-748-0539

MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. — U.S. Coast Guard units coordinated with local partners in a response to a capsized vessel with five persons and a dog in the water off Mackinac Island, Michigan on Friday.

After 2 p.m., Coast Guard Sector Northern Great Lakes received a report from Mackinac County Dispatch of a capsized vessel with multiple people in the water, including children, approximately 200 yards off Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island.

The Coast Guard Sector immediately launched a Station St. Ignace 29-foot Response Boat-Small crew, who responded to the scene along with a Mackinac Marine Rescue and the Shepler’s Ferry Wyandot. Within 20 minutes of initial notification to the Coast Guard, all five persons as well as a dog had safely been recovered from the water.

“Thanks to our close coordination with local and commercial partners, we were able to accomplish a quick and safe rescue of all persons involved,” said Lt. Alex Waide, Sector Northern Great Lakes Search and Rescue Coordinator. “This is also a great reminder of how important it is to wear life jackets; in this situation, all five of the distressed boaters were wearing them which helped buy first responders the few minutes needed to get to them in time.”

For additional information, please contact Lt. Joseph Snyder, Sector Northern Great Lakes Public Affairs Officer, at [email protected] or via phone at 906-748-0539.

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