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A windstorm hit Dillon Reservoir on Saturday causing multiple people to fall into the water.
DILLON, Colo. — Multiple people had to be rescued from Dillon Reservoir on Saturday after a windstorm caused difficult conditions for boaters.
At about 2:30 p.m. Saturday, the windstorm hit Dillon Reservoir, prompting multiple water rescues by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office boat rangers and staff from the Dillon Marina.
The first call was for a capsized kayak with a man in the water and his boat drifting toward Roberts Tunnel, according to the sheriff’s office. While crews were responding to the kayaker, they received another call for a pontoon boat with 13 people aboard that was being blown against the rocky shore of the reservoir’s Snake River Arm, the sheriff’s office said.
Dillon Marina personnel continued to assist the kayaker in the water while the sheriff’s ranger responded to the pontoon boat call. The kayaker was taken to Summit Medical Center to be treated for hypothermia, according to the sheriff’s office.
When the sheriff’s ranger arrived to the pontoon boat, the boat had beached on the rocks below the Summerwood neighborhood, the sheriff’s office said. All 13 passengers were safe.
The sheriff’s ranger then saw an empty canoe and found a man and a woman in the water about a quarter mile away, according to the sheriff’s office. The couple had been in the water for about 30 minutes and were hypothermic, the sheriff’s office said.
The couple were taken to the Frisco Marina and received warm showers and a change of clothes, according to the sheriff’s office.
“This was the first weekend of 2024 Sheriff’s Office operations on Lake Dillon,” said Summit County Sheriff Jamie FitzSimons. “I’m so proud of the professionalism our boat rangers and marina personnel bring as they save lives every week on this lake. High alpine lakes, like Dillon Reservoir, are extremely dangerous. Even exceptionally strong swimmers can find their muscles seize when falling into 43-degree water. Without a PFD, drowning is likely; we see it every year.”
The water temperature in Dillon Reservoir is currently 43 degrees Fahrenheit.
Everyone rescued was wearing a personal flotation device (PFD) which was crucial in saving their lives, the sheriff’s office said. PFDs are required for all watercraft in Colorado, including paddleboards and other hand-powered watercraft.
The Sheriff’s Office and Frisco Marina, in conjunction with the Sea Tow Foundation, have a free life jacket loaner program. These stations are set up at the Frisco Marina and the Sheriff’s Office Rangers Station at the Pine Cove campground.
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