DELAWARE — Two boats driven by Mount Vernon residents collided head-on Saturday afternoon at Alum Creek State Park, leaving one man dead.
An Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Waercraft spokesperson said the preliminary investigation indicates a boat operated by Robert Baker of Mount Vernon was being operated in an area of the lake between the Cheshire Road boat ramp and the state park campground ramp at approximately 5 p.m. Saturday. It collided with a second boat, operated by Kevin Carpenter of Mount Vernon.
Robert Baker was transported to Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, according to John Wisse, public information officer with the ODNR Division of Watercraft. His brother, Dale Baker, Columbus, was taken by MedFlight to the Ohio State University Medical Center, where he later succumbed to his injuries shortly after 11 p.m.
Carpenter and his passenger, Belinda Slone of Mount Vernon, were not seriously injured and refused treatment by emergency personnel.
The occupants of the vessels knew each other, Wisse said.
“The Division of Watercraft investigates all fatal boating accidents in the state of Ohio,” Wisse said. “We usually head up investigation of most of the serious critical incident, non-fatal, boating-related accidents.”
Regular patrols on Alum Creek are conducted by the Division of Watercraft.
“These are summer weekends. Summer weekends are among the busiest boating weekends of the year,” Wisse said.
As of this morning, Robert Baker was no longer listed as a patient at Riverside Methodist Hospital.