Nanaimo Fire Rescue crews were able to quickly retrieve two people who were thrown into Diver Lake after their small sailboat capsized Tuesday morning. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

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Boaters rescued from Nanaimo’s Diver Lake after sailboat capsizes

Jul 4, 2023 | 11:12 AM

NANAIMO — A couple were caught by gusty winds and sent into the water during a morning sail around Diver Lake.

A 911 call came in from a nearby fisherman, Trevor Shaw, around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, July 4 after he saw two people in the small sail boat get knocked around by wind.

“We were just fishing at the little dock here and I looked over and this little sail boat with two older people on it, the wind picked up and it capsized their little vessel,” Shaw told NanaimoNewsNOW.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue attended the scene at the end of Black Franks Dr. and immediately launched an inflatable rescue boat to retrieve the two sailors, who were both wearing life jackets.

The pair were in the water for around 30 minutes and survived unharmed.

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After being rescued from the water around 11 a.m., they were checked over on shore by B.C. Emergency Health Services paramedics before being released.

The owner of the boat, who requested to not be named, said he was on the water with his wife.

“We were taking our maiden voyage in the sail boat. We got the sail up, the wind came along and that was it. It was more today than we were expecting.”

He added they were having fun on the water, prior to the incident.

The boat was towed in by Nanaimo Fire Rescue crews and removed from the water a short time later. It was eventually loaded back into the owner’s truck.

Fire Rescue Capt. Brian Cripps said this was their first such rescue this year and he was glad to see the pair wearing life jackets.

He added it was important for people heading out on the water to understand how to operate their vessel correctly, suggesting people take boating safety lessons or other courses.

The boat was easily retreived from Diver Lake after gusty winds capsized the vessel. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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