Boat Carrying Elementary School Students on Field Trip Sinks in Chesapeake Bay, 22 Rescued

— -- Twenty-two people, including elementary school children, were rescued from a sinking charter boat in distress by a work boat in the Chesapeake Bay Wednesday, according to police.

The rescue happened around 6 p.m. when a charter boat taking students on a field trip hit something submerged in the waters off Bloodsworth Island, state Department of Natural Resources spokeswoman Candy Thomson said.

"The children put on life jackets as the boat went down," Thomson said. "A nearby waterman pulled all 22 passengers onto his vessel and dropped them safely on the bank of the Honga River."

Thomson said the captain of the stricken boat was airlifted to Peninsula Regional Medical Center. Two others were taken to area hospitals for treatment with non-life-threatening injuries, she added.

The Coast Guard is leading the investigation with assistance from Maryland Natural Resources Police.