Woman airlifted to hospital after Lake Norman boat fire

A woman was airlifted to the hospital Monday after the boat she was on caught fire in Lake Norman, officials said.

The woman’s condition wasn’t immediately known Monday evening. She was one of five people aboard the boat when the fire broke out shortly before 6 p.m. on Lake Norman near the Slanting Bridge access point, near Sherrill’s Ford in Catawba County.

Officer Matthew Lee of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission said wildlife enforcement officers responded to the boat fire and took the victims out of the water. In addition to the woman airlifted, another of the five people on the boat was taken to a local hospital. Lee said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

A video posted on Twitter of the incident showed other boaters watching flames and dark smoke rise from the boat, with sirens wailing in the distance.

This story was originally published May 30, 2016 at 9:06 PM.