22 Rescued When Boat Capsizes on Allegheny
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
12 August 2011
By Michael Hasch
Twenty-two people, most of them between the ages of 12 and 18, were
rescued from the Allegheny River after a Paddlers for Peace Youth
Dragon Boat capsized Thursday night near the Rachel Carson Bridge.
One young man was caught under the boat for a brief time before pulling
himself to safety, said Jim Robertson, a coach in the Three River
Rowing Association's Youth Dragon Boat League, a Communities in Action
for Peace program to introduce young people to team water sports.
All of those on board the craft were wearing mandatory personal
floatation devices and followed instructions to hang onto the boat
until Pittsburgh River Rescue units and passing boaters could help
them, said Jacob Witul, 38, a coach who was handling the rudder when
the vessel capsized shortly before 7:30 p.m.
Witul said the dragon boat -- a rowing craft that is 41 feet long, 4
feet wide in the middle, weighs 660 pounds and has 10 benches, each
holding two paddlers -- capsized when it got caught in the wake from
two passing speed boats.
"The wake from the first boat was reflecting off the sea wall, and the
wake was coming off the second boat," Witul said. "We were caught in a
bad place."
Witul said everyone stayed with the boat after it capsized.
"The kids were generally pretty positive," he said. "Some of them were
not experienced swimmers, but they all had their PFDs and followed
instructions. Some of them were excited, but all were in relatively
good spirits."
The craft -- decorated with a dragon head at the front and tail in the
back -- launched from Three Rivers Rowing Club in Millvale and was
scheduled to go to the Point and return.
"We had a full boat. There were 18 kids, all paddlers, two adult
paddlers, a drummer in the drum seat (in front), and I was at the helm
steering," Witul said.
He said those in the water managed to get the vessel upright, but it
was filled with too much water to bail it out.
River Rescue personnel pulled everyone from the water and put them on
their own boat before towing the craft to the marina at Washington's
Landing, where the young people were met by their parents.
"The kids definitely had a more memorable experience than they would
have if we had just gone to the Point and back," Witul said.
The Paddlers for Peace program promotes non-violence in communities by
inviting young people from diverse neighborhoods, cultures and
socioeconomic backgrounds to work together toward common goals.
Staff writer Tony LaRussa contributed to this story.
Michael Hasch can be reached at mhasch@tribweb.com or 412-320-7820.