A boater was treated for mild hypothermia after his boat ran out of gas and drifted to the shore of Yale Lake. The incident was reported on Monday, a few minutes after midnight.
The man assisted another boater who got stranded on the 3,612-acre lake, which lies between Clark and Cowlitz counties. While going back to his own dock, his boat ran out of gas, said North Country EMS Chief Ben Peeler.
When he was overdue, the boater’s wife called 911 to report that he was stranded on the lake. His 18-foot recreational boat, meanwhile, drifted onto a stretch of shore with no road access or dock.
The sheriff’s sergeant on duty, who was formerly on the marine unit, located the man and got his boat as close to shore as he could. The stranded boater waded out to the rescue boat, getting wet and very cold, Clark County Sheriff’s Sgt. Fred Neiman said.
The man, who was not identified, was wearing shorts and a T-shirt. He was transported to Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition, Peeler said.
