Canoe capsizes, hunters rescued
Mark Gilger/Staff Photo Emergency personnel secure their equipment after responding to the rescue of two hunters whose canoe capsized in the Susquehanna River.
DALMATIA - Two hunters from the Ephrata area were rescued from the Susquehanna River near here Friday after a canoe they were riding in overturned due to windy conditions.
Dalmatia Fire Chief Craig Gilligan said Christopher Gardner, 32, of Ephrata, and Ben Snyder, 14, of East Earl, were pulled from the river at about 1:35 p.m., approximately 50 minutes after falling out
of their capsized 16-foot canoe. He said the accident took place approximately one mile north of Dalmatia near a campsite close to railroad tracks that run along the river in Lower Mahanoy Township.
Gilligan said Gardner and Snyder were approximately 100 yards from shore when the canoe capsized, forcing them to hold onto rocks and trees to avoid going under water. He said the water was between 5 and 10 feet deep and had a strong current.
Junior Zeiset, 32, of Ephrata, riding in a separate canoe in the same area, realized his friends were in danger and steered his watercraft to shore and alerted authorities.
River rescue personnel from Millersburg in Dauphin County, who entered the river at the boat launch area in Dalmatia, were able to reach the stranded boaters. Once on shore, they were treated for hypothermia by emergency medical personnel, then transported by ambulance to Sunbury Community Hospital, where they were treated and released. They later returned to the scene to claim their canoes and other belongings.
One of the rescuers said hunting rifles and shotgun shells were found in the canoe.
He said, "They were on the other side of the river when we found them. They got caught in the wind, which was pretty strong at times."
Also assisting were river rescue personnel from Sunbury and Shamokin Dam, rescue personnel from Pillow, firefighters from Dalmatia and Dalmatia Fire Police.
Rescue personnel were cleared from the scene at about 2:30 p.m.
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