Coast Guard rescues kayaker off Atlantic Beach, NC

Coast Guard rescues kayaker off Atlantic Beach, NC

ATLANTIC BEACH, N.C. — The Coast Guard pulled a man from the water after his kayak capsized and sank about a half-mile southeast of Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, Saturday morning.

Carteret County Police dispatchers contacted watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector North Carolina this morning and notified them that the two kayakers were requesting assistance after one of them flipped over and was clinging on to the side of the other person’s kayak.

Sector North Carolina launched a 29-foot Response Boat-Small crew from Station Fort Macon to respond alongside the Atlantic Beach Fire Department.

Once on scene, the Coast Guard crew located the kayakers, who were struggling to paddle toward the shore. The boat crew made contact with the kayakers and recovered the man from the water, who was wearing a life jacket and cold-water gear.The man was taken to Station Fort Macon and did not require any further medical assistance.

“It's good to see people boating as a group and utilizing the appropriate safety gear for cold water,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler McGregor, coxswain during the case. “Fortunately this man was able to come out of the situation unscathed, but if he was alone and didn’t have his life jacket on in these cold temperatures, it could have been a different story.”

-USCG-