Coast Guard Rescues MOL Man, Daughter From Lake Erie

A U.S. Coast Guard boat crew from Fairport Harbor station rescued a Mentor-On-The-Lake man and his daughter after the boat they were aboard caught fire and began taking on water Tuesday evening in Lake Erie near Eastlake.

The man used the boat's marine radio to call for help at 6:08 p.m. He said the exhaust system of his 33-foot cabin cruiser caught fire, causing the vessel to take on water, while he was boating from Eastlake to Mentor

When the boatcrew arrived on scene at 6:25 p.m., the fire was out and the father had the flooding under control.

He and his daughter were both wearing life jackets. The man guessed the vessel had approximately 75 gallons of water in it during the peak of the flooding.

Once the vessel was bailed, the Coast Guardsmen towed it to .

The names of the man and his daughter were not released.

The Coast Guard noted that the man did two important things right, He had a VHF-FM marine radio on his boat, which is better than a cell phone during emergencies. Phones can only make one-to-one calls but radios can broadcast requests for help.

Additionally, the man had life jackets for himself and his daughter.

The Coast Guard encourages mariners to wear their life jackets at all times while on the water because accidents often occur quickly and without warning. It can be extremely difficult to find and don a life jacket during an emergency, according to the Coast Guard.