After getting caught in a severe thunderstorm Friday evening, 13 boaters were rescued from the Potomac River in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Swiftwater rescue boat crews responded to a part of the river located by Sycamore Landing Road and Riley’s Lock around 6:30 p.m., after the boaters managed to make it to the shore and called 911, fire officials said.
The area was under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning at that time.
According to Montgomery County Fire and EMS spokesman Pete Piringer, the boaters were in a “fairly remote area,” but were able to protect themselves from the heavy rain, thunder and lightning by holding their boat over their heads.
It took some time for rescue crews to get to the boaters, but they were able to locate them at the edge of the river. Piringer said the boaters were in a difficult area to get them out by land. As a result, some swiftwater rescue boats were dispatched from Montgomery County and were able to get to the boaters and helped them to safety to the Seneca Creek boat ramp. There were no injuries.
Piringer said dispatchers initially thought the boaters were on the Virginia side of the river. First responders from Loudon and Fairfax counties were initially called to respond, but were placed in service once officials determined that the boaters were in Maryland.
When asked if he has any safety tips for people spending time outdoors during the summer months, Piringer said to “pay attention the weather,” including any severe weather watches, warnings and general conditions.
“Whatever your recreation activities or outdoor activities may be, certainly this time of year when we do have pretty significant and intense storms from time to time, pay attention to the weather,” Piringer said. “And know you always have a plan, have a game plan in the event that something should occur.”
With the severe weather, Piringer said Friday night was “a pretty busy time” for Montgomery County first responders.
“Our communication center went on condition red, and that simply means that they were at very high call volume,” Piringer said. “A lot of our units were committed throughout the county, handling calls, but so far everything’s been managed.”
WTOP’s Carlos Ramirez contributed to this story.
