Kayakers Rescued From Waters Near Skyway Bridge: U.S. Coast Guard

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — Two kayakers were rescued from waters near the Sunshine Skyway Bridge Saturday after their boat flipped, the U.S. Coast Guard Station Cortez wrote in a Facebook post.

A Coast Guard boat crew learned about the overturned kayak around 8 p.m. through a 911-connected mobile app. They learned that marine rescue crews with the Manatee County and Pinellas County sheriff’s offices were responding to the distressed kayakers.

The Station Cortez boat crew retrieved both kayakers from the water just before 8:30 p.m. and transferred them to an Eckerd College Search and Rescue crew boat. They were brought to O’Neill’s Marina.

There were no injuries reported and the kayak was recovered, the Coast Guard said.

“The proper use of life jackets and coordination between partner agencies aided the rescue of both people,” said Lt. Casey Skomer, an operations unit controller at Sector St. Petersburg. “All kayakers are reminded to have a life jacket, sound-making device, and a light if paddling at night.”