The busiest time of the year has arrived at the U.S. Marblehead Coast Guard Station: Rescuing stranded boaters on Lake Erie.
Last year during the summer months officers made 150 runs.Over a 36=hour period just this week there were two incidents involving boats taking on water.
"It's been windy this year. So whenever it's windy, wake is choppy , the smaller boats go out. Doesn't take much to overturn a boat," according to Petty Officer Kevin Morron.
The warning comes during National Safe Boating Week. Many times the boat captain is drunk.
Morron said you should always have a sober operator. Alcohol is the leading cause of boating fatalities.
Coast Guard officials remind everyone how they can remain safe while out on the waterways: always wear a life jacket.
The statistics are staggering.
In 2017, drowning was the reported cause of death in four our of every five recreational boating fatalities.
84.5% of those who drowned were not wearing life jackets.
"If you're wearing your life jacket and you go overboard whether you sustain an injury going over or not, you're going to stay afloat in a life jacket," added Morron.
Best advice from the Coast Guard: Wearing a life jacket is the responsible thing to do.