One person died and eight others were rescued in Frederick County, Maryland yesterday (Saturday) after a pontoon boat went over the dam at Lake Linganore. Fire and rescue crews from Frederick County led the rescue operations. According to the Frederick News-Post three of those saved were lifted off the rocks by a Maryland State Police helicopter.
One person died and eight were rescued from the water after swift currents swept their boat over the dam into the spillway at Lake Linganore Saturday evening.
Officials say the nine people were surprised by the fast-moving water and lost control of their boat. They were thrown from the boat about 6:30 p.m.
Candy Thomson, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Natural Resources Police, tells The Frederick News-Post that the 62-year-old man operating the boat died following the Saturday evening incident.
Rescue workers recovered the man’s body Saturday night, about five hours after the accident. An autopsy is pending.
The eight people who were rescued were taken to Frederick Memorial Hospital. Information about their condition was not immediately available.
Authorities say three of the eight rescued were stranded on the spillway, clinging to rocks as a Maryland State Police helicopter hoisted them up to the aircraft one by one. The nine people on the boat ranged from teenagers to adults.
