New Hope Fire Department Corey Comstock disputed a report by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency about the rescue of 33 kayakers from extremely high winds near Nickajack Cave on Monday.
TWRA said New Hope Fire Department arrived with a boat for rescue efforts. However, the vessel was small, and it was capsized by winds before disconnecting from the trailer.
Chief Comstock said their boat was blown over while it was still on the trailer.
However, he said the boat was righted and the New Hope squad rescued three boatfuls of stranded kayakers.
The TWRA gave this updated account:
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Officers responded to a call from Marion County regarding kayakers out of their boats near Nickajack cave around 8:30 p.m. (CDT), Monday, March 25. Officers arrived to find 33 kayakers, including children, stranded on a bank due to extremely high winds.
A Nickajack cave tour group left out of the Macedonia Road boat ramp earlier in the evening, paddling across the lake to the Nickajack cave. Harsh conditions and high winds quickly challenged the kayakers, and a few did enter the water. The entire group made it to shore near the cave and called for emergency assistance.
Haletown Volunteer Fire Department, New Hope Fire Department, Puckett EMS, and Marion County Sheriff’s Office also responded. First responder boats were able to ferry kayakers to shore, where they were tended to by medical personnel. No injuries resulted from the incident.
All kayakers were wearing life jackets. TWRA Boating Officer David Holt said, “This is a great example of the importance of life jackets. With water temperatures in the mid 50s and high wind speeds, life jackets were a key safety factor.” Wildlife officers and all agencies responded quickly to the scene to provide care for the stranded boaters and get them back to safety in extremely poor water conditions.