Man pitched off boat into Lake Superior, makes lengthy swim to island and is rescued

A person fell off a ship into Lake Superior quickly after pushing off from Minnesota’s North Shore, swam a good distance to an island and was rescued, officers mentioned Tuesday.

The drama within the waters close to Grand Portage unfolded Friday night time and ended with the person coming away chilled however in any other case unscathed, mentioned Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen.

Peter Joice, 41, and boat operator Joe Modec, 75, each from Duluth, had been planning to make the jaunt of 26 miles or so from the Grand Portage Marina to Isle Royale north of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, mentioned Eliasen.

They pushed off late Friday afternoon and early of their voyage, “the boat hit a wave and [Joice] lost his balance and fell out of the boat” and not using a lifejacket on, the sheriff mentioned.

Eliasen mentioned Modec “kept going and didn’t notice for quite some time” that his passenger was lacking.

The sheriff mentioned Joice reported that he swam about 2 miles to Grand Portage Island, informally often known as Pete’s Island, and “began waving some sticks in the air” within the hopes of being rescued.

A Sheriff’s Office report learn that Joice stripped all the way down to his boxers whereas within the water to beat back hypothermia.

A conservation officer with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa took a ship to the island, “saw him and brought him to shore,” Eliasen mentioned.