Boaters rescued after spending two days stranded on Great Slave Lake
Water can be unpredictable, dangerous: tour operator
Meagan Leonard
Northern News Services
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Two tourists and a boat operator were rescued Sunday night after sailing 23 nautical miles from their planned route on Great Slave Lake.
A truck pulls a boat out of Great Slave Lake in 2014. Three boaters were rescued Sunday morning after their tour boat became stranded for two days on the Western shore of the North Arm - almost 60 km from the city. - NNSL file photo |
The group left Yellowknife around 11 a.m. Friday morning and were expected to return by 5 p.m. that afternoon.
According to an RCMP press release, the boat driver deviated from the scheduled route along the Eastern side of the North Arm and headed toward the western shore.
The vessel did not have enough fuel to make the return trip and docked at Gypsum Point, almost 60 km from Yellowknife.
When the group did not return, search and rescue teams were deployed, but due to the change in the boater's planned travel route, their boat could not be located.
Around 9 p.m. Saturday evening the boat operator was able to make contact with emergency services through marine radio.
"He advised that they were at Gypsum Point on Great Slave Lake, medically fine but requiring assistance," stated the news release.
Due to poor weather conditions and high winds, the boaters could not be rescued until Sunday morning. A helicopter transported the passengers back to the city where they were examined by emergency medical services as a precaution.
Yellowknife Outdoor Adventures tour operator Carlos Gonzalez said although he doesn't know specific details about what happened on the weekend, the lake can be unpredictable and even the most experienced boaters run into trouble from time to time.
"Any lake has to be respected, but Great Slave Lake can turn on a dime with weather conditions. Even if you get the marine weather report it's not always accurate in terms of velocity of winds or direction of wind," he said. "So, one has to be extremely aware of their environment."
He said pervading low water levels mean many previously used routes have had to be changed.
"Water is just about 22 inches low right now, so obviously many locations we were able to travel with a boat 30 years ago, there's low water - if any - so it's very dangerous to go through those locations," he explained.
"We had to change some of our routes."
He said he has never ventured as far as Gypsum Point on one of his tours, choosing instead to typically stay within 40 km of the city. Although there are numerous avenues for peril out on the water, his company takes precautions to ensure the safety of their guests on every trip - whether they are fishing or sightseeing, he added.
"In town there is always somebody who knows where we're going for that day," he said. "A lot of times our tours involve two or three boats ... we're also in telecommunications range wherever we go so we're able to communicate with people in town or emergency services."
Nevertheless, there's always room for human error.
"Every day could be a different situation," he said.
