A unique rescue took place on Okanagan Lake this week, after a broken gas gauge left a speedboat stranded.
Fire on Water, a Kelowna-based women's dragon boat team, was practising on the lake, when the group encountered the stranded boaters attempting to row to shore, having run out of gas.
Dragon boater Marlies White suggested the team help out. Rower Sue Phillips said the stranded boaters initially laughed when they pulled up, until they realized the women were serious.
The team jumped into action, tied a line to the boat and towed it back to shore at Dockside Marine Centre, just after 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
“It wasn't a long way out,” Phillips said. “It was more funny than anything.”
Phillips said the boaters had just got the boat and were taking it out for their first time. Despite the gas gauge reading half full, the boat quickly ran out of fuel.
“The gas gauge was obviously broken, so they didn't get out too far,” Phillips said. “They got better gas mileage by us pulling them in.”
The Fire on Water team is travelling to Vancouver this weekend to take part in the dragon boat festival there.