Huntington Beach Night Kayak Rescue

On Saturday evening (01/15/17) around 6 p.m., Midway Fire Rescue responded to Oyster Shell Landing for reported kayakers in distress. The caller stated that he was stuck in the middle of the water and it was getting dark, cold and unknown of his exact location. Battalion 81 along with Surf 1,2,3 including Engine 811 and 821 responded to the landing to start coordinating efforts to find the Kayakers. Battalion 82 also contacted Department of Natural Resources and the United States Coast Guard for assistance along with notifying Murrells Inlet to start getting units ready to assist if needed. After about 20 minutes, the subjects were located in the area of the Huntington Beach State Park near the Causeway by Huntington Beach State Park Rangers. All units responded to the area including Rescue 816 for lighting and the director of Georgetown County Emergency Management for the use of a drone with thermal imaging. The crews located the exact location and formulated a plan to place two paddle board rescuers into the water to meet up with the kayakers to escort them out of the marsh. As the tide was rising, the crews made it quickly to the victims and escorted them out of the water. Medic 815 met with the kayakers once they were brought to the shore, finding only minor injuries from oryster cuts and bruises. The crews worked quickly and efficiently to make a successful rescue of the kayakers and escorting them to safety. The incident was terminated after two hours of operating on scene

Command: Battalion 82

Operations: Engine 821 Officer

Safety: Engine 811 Officer

Units:

Engine 811

Engine 821

Rescue 816

Surf 1

Surf 2

Surf 3

Medic 815

Huntington Beach State Park Rangers