Lexington, SC (Paul Kirby) – A lost kayak caused enough concern Sunday that someone who saw it called 911. The kayak was first spotted by someone along the Lower Saluda River in an area close to the River Club neighborhood.
The kayak was full of water and only the bow was showing. No one was with it when it was spotted. The caller and everyone else was concerned because no one knew if it had tipped over, dumping its kayaker into the ice-cold water.
Lexington County’s Fire Service was notified, and they launched a boat on their side of the Lower Saluda. They requested that the Irmo Fire District launch their boat on the opposite side. Both departments have specially trained swift water rescue firefighters on-duty for cases such as these.
Not long after launching, Lexington County received information that earlier in the weekend, a man was launching his kayak and the fast running water just swept it away. This was verified by law enforcement and the fire service who spoke to the kayak’s owner before Lexington County recalled their boat.
No one was injured in the incident. The battalion chief from Lexington County called it a good opportunity to do some training with the boat, if nothing else.
