DRUMMOND ISLAND, MI-- A Department of Natural Resources conservation officer rescued two Chicago men whose boat overturned in the eastern U.P. Friday.
Officer Todd Sumbera was patrolling waters north of Drummond Island and west of Harbor Island around 1:45 p.m. when he saw two people in the water clinging to an overturned personal watercraft.
A 41-year-old man who didn’t know how to swim was panicked and exhausted. He and a 64-year old man were improperly wearing torn life jackets and had been in the water for 10 minutes. They told the officer they’d never operated a personal watercraft before and high winds and rough water swamped them when they put the vessel in reverse.
Sumbera helped the men onto his boat and towed their watercraft to shore. He advised them to get properly fitting, well-maintained life jackets before they head out on the water again.
