1 Dead, 2 Hurt In Lake Erie Boat Crash

BALLAST ISLAND, Ohio (WWJ) - A boat crash on Lake Erie leaves one person dead and two others hospitalized with "severe" injuries, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

The crash happened about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday night when a 25-foot boat slammed into a break wall near Ballast Island, just north of Put-in-Bay.

Lt. Justin Westmiller with the U.S. Coast Guard said the crash took place just three miles away from a Coast Guard training exercise, so they reached the scene quickly.

"The Coast Guard boat crew out of station mobile had responded.  They were near the area conducting training," said Westmiller. "It probably did help save more lives."

Westmiller said the cause of the crash isn't clear yet, but weather might have played a role.

"It was reported to be thunderstorms and rain in the area and the waves on the water were two-to-three feet," said Westmiller. "That may have been an approximate cause but we don't know of that for sure if that impacted the accident."

No word on where the victims are from, but the two survivors were taken to a hospital in Port Clinton, Ohio.