SUFFOLK, Va. — An adult and a dog were rescued Thursday morning from a stranded catamaran in the James River, according to Suffolk Fire-Rescue.
Watch: Hurricane Erin is off the coast of North Carolina with tropical storm warnings in effect
Crews reached out to the operator of a 30-foot Catalac Catamaran around 9:30 a.m. after the boat was seen drifting towards the Suffolk shore line, west of I-664. The adult onboard said the catamaran was adrift after taking on water and losing propulsion.
Suffolk Fire-Rescue and Newport News Fire sent boats out to rescue the adult and dog. Crews safely took them to Decoy's, and no one was hurt in the incident.
The adult onboard says they were traveling south from Delaware and trying to find safe harbor from Hurricane Erin when the catamaran lost power.
While the rescue was a success, the boat was unable to be recovered, fire officials say. The anchor couldn't prevent the catamaran from drifting in the choppy waters, wind and waves in the James River. The fire boats also tried to keep the boat from moving towards the shore, but the conditions were too rough, officials added.
Watch: Rough surf, heavy winds sweep the Outer Banks
After coordinating with the Coast Guard, fire officials shared the boat will stay in the river due to the rough waters. The boat's owner is responsible for salvaging the vessel and any required clean-up once Erin passes, officials added.
Meteorologist Myles Henderson says as of 11 a.m., Hurricane Erin is centered about 260 miles east of Cape Hatteras, NC. Erin is a very large hurricane, with hurricane-force winds extending outward up to 105 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extending outward up to 320 miles.
