For the second time in a week, members of Brighton Rescue have raced onto Lake Ontario to save two people.
And once again, life jackets made a critical difference.
The latest emergency unfolded Monday afternoon (August 10, 2026) when a man and woman found themselves in distress aboard a boat that was rapidly taking on water approximately six to eight nautical miles off Presqu’ile.
At 5:15 p.m., the pager went off at Brighton Rescue.
Within minutes, crew members including Captain Len Kuipers, navigator Ben Ogden, Geoff Suddard at the helm and crew members Darren Plumbe, Liam Heffernan and Mike Kiers were at the dock and preparing their 34-foot, 900-horsepower rescue vessel for what would become another dramatic Lake Ontario rescue.
“We knew it was something fairly urgent,” said Kuipers who is also Executive Director of Brighton Rescue. “Five people signed up right away, and a sixth person came.”
The crew quickly learned they were responding to a sinking boat with two people aboard.
“They were in distress, and it was imminent danger,” Kuipers said. “We had to ready the boat very quickly.”
The Brighton Rescue crew was underway less than 15 minutes after receiving the call.
With the last known coordinates entered into their navigation system, the crew raced across Lake Ontario.
The rescue boat, capable of speeds approaching 45 to 50 miles per hour, made quick work of the distance.
As they neared the last known position, the crew slowed and placed spotters on the front deck.
Then came the call they were hoping for.
“Immediately Liam picked them up,” Kuipers said. “He said, ‘We got two people at the water.’”
The crew moved toward the couple, who were clinging to each other in the water and waving their arms.
They were also holding a cellphone above the surface.
The pair had managed to get 911 on the phone and were still connected when Brighton Rescue arrived.
“They were thanking us before they were in the boat,” Kuipers said.
With the rescue vessel carefully maneuvered alongside them, crew members pulled both people from the water.
They were aboard by approximately 5:48 p.m.
Although the water temperature was around 74 degrees, the couple were visibly shaken and cold after spending time in the lake.
“We brought them right up here, helped them into there, got them some nice warm blankets,” Kuipers said. “We closed up all the windows, got them warm, and assured them that we were going to be okay and that we were going to get back.”
The couple was suffering from shock and was visibly shaking.
Kuipers said the pair were able to tell rescuers that a mechanical failure had led to the emergency.
The boat had begun taking on water and the couple realized it was going down.
By the time they made their emergency calls, the situation had become critical.
“They were overcome with the mechanical failure,” Kuipers said. “The boat was filling up (with water), so they knew it was going down.”
The rescue unfolded under relatively favourable conditions, with waves of approximately two to three feet.
That was a welcome change from the conditions Brighton Rescue encountered during another dramatic rescue just a week earlier, when crew members responded to an emergency involving much larger waves.
The calmer conditions also helped rescuers locate the couple before the situation became even more dangerous.
“We spotted them really early,” he said. “The guys were extremely efficient. Jeff was great on the helm, the crew was great pulling them in. Total success.”
The two people were back at the Brighton dock at approximately 6:09 p.m. — less than an hour after the initial call.
Waiting for them were members of the Brighton Fire Department, Northumberland OPP and Northumberland County Paramedics.
The couple was turned over to emergency responders for further assessment.
Kuipers said that handoff is an important part of the work performed by Brighton Rescue.
“We’re the first response,” he said. “Then we bring them to the professionals at the next level and then they get the best help they need with the emergency.”
Monday’s rescue marks the second time in just one week that Brighton Rescue has pulled people from serious trouble on Lake Ontario.
Kuipers described the frequency of the incidents as highly unusual.
“I would say it’s very unprecedented,” he said.
Brighton Rescue has responded to boats taking on water in the past, sometimes using dewatering pumps to keep vessels afloat.
But Monday’s situation was different.
“This one, it was out of control very quickly,” Kuipers said.
And there is one common factor Kuipers believes helped save lives in both recent rescues.
Life jackets.
“100 per cent. Wear your life jackets,” he said.
“It may seem uncomfortable, but wear them.”
“It’s not a coincidence that the greatest amount of recoveries happen with those that are wearing life jackets.”
For two people who watched their boat disappear beneath the waters of Lake Ontario Monday afternoon, that advice may have been the difference between a terrifying rescue and a tragedy.
And once again, Brighton Rescue was there when the call came.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
