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A 911 caller at 10:37 a.m. reported that two people aboard a small kayak were trying to chop through the ice to make it back to shore, Deputy Fire Chief Chris King said in a statement.
The kayakers appeared to be in distress and were about 75 to 100 feet off shore, the caller reported.
The Norwalk Fire Department responded with its 38-foot boat, which is capable of breaking through ice and has a heated cabin to warm up victims if needed, King said. The boat was under way within 10 minutes of the call and made contact with the kayakers at 11:01 a.m., he said.
The kayakers were attempting to break through ice that was 1 to 2 inches thick in places, King said. They were in good health, he said, but both were dressed in street clothes with no thermal value and they had no protective gear with them.
The air temperature was in the 20s, and the water temperature was 32 degrees with a freezing drizzle falling. In these conditions, King said, hypothermia could set in and loss of dexterity would occur in less than two minutes and unconsciousness in under 15 minutes.
Both kayakers were taken aboard the Fire Department boat and returned to shore in good condition, he said.
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