Footage from a CHP helicopter shows first responders rescue two kayakers from the San Francisco Bay. (Video courtesy: CHP – Golden Gate Division Air Operations)
Two 21-year-old kayakers were rescued from the chilly waters of the San Francisco Bay Saturday night after their kayak capsized near the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The kayakers called 911 around 8:20 p.m. and told authorities that their kayak tipped over, leaving them floating in the water with the help of their life jackets but still in need of being rescued, the CHP said.
Roughly two hours after the 911 call, a CHP helicopter spotted the kayakers bobbing in the water. The helicopter crew alerted first responders in the water of the kayakers' location, leading to a successful rescue.
The kayakers were found roughly one-quarter of a mile off the Tiburon shoreline, a distance approximately 2.5 miles away from the location where they called 911, according to the CHP.
The CHP credited the kayakers' life jackets with playing a vital role in their survival.
"Without them, it would have been difficult to stay afloat for over two hours," the CHP wrote on Facebook.
