On September 20, 2009 at approximately 4:00 PM the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office notified Iowa DNR Officer of a capsized vessel on Clear Lake, just north of the landmarks PM Park and Dodges Point area.  The occurrence happened in Cerro Gordo County.

	DNR Officer arrived at the location and observed a single vessel capsized, and three subjects (two adult males, and one adult female) were already removed from the water by a passing motorboat.  The three subjects were transferred to DNR Officer’s vessel.

	The vessel was a 14’ 1977 Glastron open bow tri-hull motorboat with a 75 horsepower Johnson outboard motor.  The hull identification number is: GLA64112M77A, with a registration number of: IA 2390 AW and displaying 2010 registration decals.


	Operator 1 explained they were cruising around the lake in their vessel; they made a short stop at the Ritz property to use the restroom facilities.   While docked at the Ritz property, Operator 1 noticed water in the back of the boat under the raised flooring, and along the edge of the flooring behind the operator’s seat.  Operator 1 thought the water was due to the wave spray that came in when the vessel hit a wave while underway.  Operator 1 explained they continued their boat ride in a westward direction toward and around Dodges Point.  As they were travelling towards Dodges Point the front passenger Passenger2 stood up to move to the back of the boat.  When that happened Operator 1 explained water came over the bow of the vessel very quickly, and the boat filled with water and capsized.

	Passenger1 called 911 and a passing boat pulled all three subjects out of the water and DNR Officer arrived shortly after that.

	When the vessel was removed from the water the boat plug was found to be installed properly.

	The cause of the occurrence was a combination of an old vessel with a raised floorboard that concealed the slow leak in the hull structure, and the operator and passengers not paying attention to the amount of water accumulating inside the boat.  Alcohol was not a factor in this occurrence.
Clear Lake                    