Kayakers trapped for hours in chest-deep mud as tide rose around them, NC rescuers say
A “deadly situation” played out on North Carolina’s Oak Island Sunday, March 6, when a father and his sons went kayaking and ended up sucked into coastal mud as the tide went out.
Two of the three were trapped chest deep when Oak Island Water Rescue arrived by hovercraft, according to an agency statement posted on Facebook.
The incident happened in a tidal marsh along the Intracoastal Waterway, officials said. Oak Island is about 30 miles southwest of Wilmington, N.C.
“Just after 3 pm, (rescuers) were dispatched for 3-4 persons who were kayaking and now out of their kayaks and stuck in the mud/marsh,” officials reported. “Reports ... were that one person may be under the mud and others were calling for help.”
Multiple agencies responded, including the U.S. Coast Guard and Oak Island Fire Department, officials said.
An Oak Island Water Rescue hovercraft was guided to the site by drone and confirmed three people were stranded, with “two being stuck in the mud chest high.”
The hovercraft “extricated” the two boys first, and took them to Brunswick County EMS staff waiting at a boat ramp. The team then returned and picked up their father, officials said.
Identities of the three and their conditions were not released. Video posted on YouTube show all three had gotten out of their kayaks and were walking to shore when they became stuck.
“The mud was cold and the victims had been out there for a few hours,” the agency wrote on Facebook.
“Our hovercraft and drone saved three lives today. With a rising tide and two victims chest deep in mud and unable to escape, this was a deadly situation.”
Coastal tidal marshes are popular places for kayaking, but water levels change drastically as the tide goes out, Oak Island Water Rescue officials said.
“The tide went out, the water went away, and they were left trying to escape the mud,” agency officials wrote on Facebook.
“But it’s not regular mud, it is super soft, filled with oyster beds and sharp shells, and can act almost like quicksand. The more you move and try to get out of it, the worse things get.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2022 at 6:26 AM with the headline "Kayakers trapped for hours in chest-deep mud as tide rose around them, NC rescuers say."