WESTON, Fla. — A South Florida man kicked off 2021 with a splashy performance -- just not the kind he wanted.
The man had to be rescued by firefighters and his wife when his inflatable kayak overturned Friday, the Sun-Sentinel reported.
The man, whose name was not released, was kayaking about 5 p.m. in Weston when the watercraft overturned, leaving him treading water in the middle of the lake, WSVN reported.
‘She is the true hero of this story,’ firefighters say after wife saves sinking kayaker in Weston https://t.co/9utxLsS4Lk pic.twitter.com/BXr0s8jS3d
— South Florida Sun Sentinel (@SunSentinel) January 2, 2021
The man’s family recently bought the kayak, according to Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue.
After the kayak overturned, the man’s wife swam out to him with life vests while a neighbor called 911, according to Battalion Chief Michael B. Kane. A firefighter also jumped into the water, swimming to the vessel and attaching a tow line.
“When rescuers arrived they found the wife of the victim paddling in the kayak and the husband in tow behind the watercraft,” Kane told the Sun-Sentinel. “The wife’s split decision and wherewithal to first secure a flotation device to herself before swimming out to her husband and securing him may have been the main catalyst in preventing a loss of life.”
Crews rescue kayaker, wife after vessel overturns on lake behind Weston homehttps://t.co/4jY3UYGPFj
— WSVN 7 News (@wsvn) January 2, 2021
“Had she not responded in the precise manner which she did, firefighters may have been dealing with a recovery instead of a rescue. She is the true hero of this story.”
The man was unhurt but he was taken to an area hospital as a precaution, the Sun-Sentinel reported.
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