Woman injured after jet ski explodes

by paNOW staff

A scary incident at Emma Lake this past Friday, involving a jet ski exploding, may serve as a good reminder for owners to give their own machines a thorough look over.

The jet ski exploded on start up, and the rider was thrown several feet. Dean Lato, owner and general manager of Pines Power Sports Marine in Prince Albert, has been in the business of selling Sea-Doos for seven years and told paNOW this was the first time he had heard of a jet ski exploding. He said it’s obvious some sort of spark ignited some fuel vapour.

“Do I take the seat off my Sea-Doo every time I go for a ride? No but I’ll tell you once a weekend I’m probably peeking in there taking a look to make sure everything is where it’s supposed to be, and I don’t see anything that’s not supposed to be in there like fuel vapours,” he said.

Both the Lakeland and District Fire Department and Parkland Ambulance responded to the scene Friday at Birch Bay. According to Parkland Ambulance, the 54-year-old woman riding the jet ski was taken to hospital in Saskatoon, where she was listed in good and stable condition. Lato said it’s quite common for multiple people to use the same jet ski over the course of the same day, adding often times the machines will get stored away wet.

“I’ll tell you that Sea-Doos are one of those things that just do not get enough yearly maintenance. Everybody figures if it still runs, we’ll just keep running it until it stops running and then we will sort it out with a dealer, or somebody to get it looked at,” he said.