The Vancouver Fire Department responded to an overturned jet ski on the Washington side of the Columbia River on Monday morning, according to a spokesman.
Both of the riders, a man and a woman, who had been on the jet ski were located by emergency personnel shortly after the initial dispatch for a boater in distress about 6:35 a.m.
A passer-by noticed a man floating downriver and called 911, said Vancouver Fire Department Capt. Pete Adams.
Responders found the man sitting on a dock at the 800 block of Southeast Marine Park Way in Vancouver, Adams said.
The man told firefighters he’d been traveling on the jet ski with his wife when it overturned, causing the couple to fall into the cold water. Adams did not know exactly what caused the jet ski to turn over.
The woman was able to swim to a nearby boat when the jet ski capsized. A fire department rescue boat picked her up and reunited her with her husband onshore, Adams said.
Both of the jet skiers were wearing life jackets, which likely saved their lives. The water was reported to be about 54 degrees.
Officials say anything below 70 degrees can be dangerous, and in Washington, most waterways stay below 60 degrees year-round.
Firefighters reported that the man was in the water for about 10 minutes.
The couple live in a boat on the Columbia River upstream from the Marine Park dock, Adams said. They use the jet ski to commute to shore, he said.
Medics evaluated the couple; both declined a trip to the hospital.
