Boaters on Great Slave Lake's East Arm call for help after boat sinks

A group of boaters needed help on the East Arm of the N.W.T.'s Great Slave Lake early Wednesday morning, after one of their boats sank.

RCMP got the report of a distressed vessel at about 4:30 a.m., according to a news release. They were advised that a group of boats had run into rough water conditions and one of the boats had sunk.

All of the people on board the sinking boat were able to make it onto other boats.

A coast guard auxiliary vessel was deployed, along with an RCMP officer trained in marine search and rescue.

There were no injuries and all of the remaining boats returned safely to Yellowknife.

The boaters used a satellite phone to contact the RCMP and had plenty of emergency supplies, the news release said.

RCMP are not releasing the names of the boaters or where they were from.

They say the incident is a good reminder for people to be prepared for an emergency on the water, such as carrying extra fuel and emergency supplies, wearing life jackets, informing people of your travel plans, and checking the marine forecast.