Lake gets rough as summer starts

The three calls came within an hour Thursday night: a fight on a cruise boat, a domestic dispute on the water, a crash involving two speed boats.

“It was hectic,” Kootenai County Marine Sgt. Matt Street said.

Until that evening, there hadn’t been much trouble on Lake Coeur d’Alene this boating season. Street said he was surprised nobody was seriously hurt or killed in the after-sunset collision.

Neither driver – nor the combined 11 passengers aboard – was wearing a life jacket. Though alcohol was involved, the drivers were not over the legal limit.

According to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Department, the boats crashed near Walkers Bay about 10 p.m. while headed to a private dock. A 27-foot Baja boat operated by John L. Goodlander, 41, struck a 25-foot Cobalt operated by 21-year-old Peter C. Jones Jr.

Jones’ boat did not have the required lights, and Goodlander reportedly didn’t see the boat until it was too late, Street said.

One passenger dove into the water just before the boats collided, Street said. The crash is under investigation, and citations are pending.

“This is a good example of how important it is to pay attention,” Street said. “Not only for operators but passengers, too.”

He urges passengers to help watch for other boats, especially those without lights on. Idaho and Washington require lights between sunset and sunrise.

Also, Washington prohibits those operating boats from drinking alcohol.

“It’s illegal to operate a boat with alcohol,” said Dona Wolfe, boating education specialist for the Washington State Parks Boating program.

Idaho law is more lenient: A boater is over the legal limit with a blood-alcohol level of .08 or higher. The crime is punishable by six months in jail and a $1,000 fine in Idaho. In Washington, a conviction for operating a boat under the influence can result in a 90-day jail sentence and $1,000 fine.

Street said 38 boaters were cited in Idaho last year for boating under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Of those, 29 citations were issued in Kootenai County.

“Our bodies of water are more conducive to partying,” Street said of the disproportionate number of local offenses. “Other parts of the state are more rural and not so much a resort community.”