Canoe capsizes on Tolsona Lake; rescue raft overturns; all reach island safely

A canoe capsized on Tolsona Lake on May 29, 2026. A bystander's raft overturned during a rescue attempt. Multiple people went into cold water at the lake off the Glenn Highway near Glennallen.

All occupants wore life jackets. They reached a nearby island.

Alaska State Troopers and local fire crews launched a boat and transported the stranded boaters from the island to the mainland. No injuries were reported, according to the Alaska Department of Public Safety Daily Dispatch.

The incident occurred during early-season boating on a roadside Interior lake, where cold water and limited immediate rescue resources can turn a capsize into a life-threatening emergency. The response involved multiple agencies.

The Alaska Office of Boating Safety and Alaska Department of Public Safety have long emphasized life jacket use for all boaters. The majority of boating-related drowning victims in Alaska were not wearing one. Cold-water immersion in typical Alaska lake temperatures can cause cold shock and rapid swimming failure within minutes.

The Alaska Office of Boating Safety warns that attempting rescues from unstable small craft can lead to multiple capsizes. That increases the number of people in cold water and complicates search and rescue operations.

State and federal safety agencies recommend that rescuers on the water use the reach, throw, row, go hierarchy. Throw flotation or use a boat only when it can be done without capsizing or endangering additional people.