Nearly 1,500 Float Down participants land in Canada

As they floated under the Blue Water Bridge, Gabrielle Satryb and her friends looked up to see the enchanting structure – a highlight of the Port Huron Float Down along the St. Clair River – before realizing they were unexpectedly headed toward the Canadian shore.

After strong winds blew Float Down participants off course Sunday afternoon many landed on foreign soil.

Gabrielle, 16, of Marysville, said as the wind picked up it seemed inevitable that they would float over to the neighboring country.

“When we reached the shore we were met with some friendly Sarnia police that gave off the vibe that they were going to try their best to get us back to the U.S.,” she said. “But instead of waiting around we decided to use some muscle and get ourselves back. I jumped in the water with a life jacket and swam holding the rafts while my friend, Zach Howe, was in a kayak paddling.”

After about an hour, Gabrielle made it back across the river. She said others she saw weren’t as lucky.

Sarnia Police Service Staff Sgt. Scott Clarke said between 1,200 and 1,500 floaters landed in Sarnia.

Strong winds throw Port Huron Float Down participants off course

It took 19 Sarnia Transit bus loads and six hours to return everyone back to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Clarke said.

"From the transit side of it, it went very well," said Lee Patterson, Sarnia Transit deputy director. "Most people were pretty well behaved and we did our best to get them back over and keep them warm and comfortable."

Patterson said he called in four bus drivers on their day off and used a total of 10 buses to complete the transport. He said he has not yet calculated the cost of the endeavor, nor does he know who will foot the bill. He said after Sarnia officials have a debriefing they will discuss how to coordinate with Port Huron officials.

Clarke said Canadian Customs did not process the unexpected visitors, but left that for U.S. officials to do.

“It was a bit of a nightmare but we got through it,” Clarke said. “There were long waits and long lines, (the floaters) were cold and wet, but they all made it home.”

The annual Float Down started around 1 p.m. at Lighthouse Beach in Port Huron and wound its way down the St. Clair River to Chrysler Beach in Marysville.

Sarnia Police Service began getting calls around 4 p.m. Sunday from floaters who needed assistance on the St. Clair River.

Clarke said it was a wet and windy day that participants were not prepared for. However, he said no injuries escalated past some minor scrapes and bruises on the Canadian side.

“No one had (identification) or anything; they were unprepared to be stranded anywhere,” Clarke said.

St. Clair County Sheriff Dive Team Chief Wayne Brusate said it was challenging locating the true medical emergencies.

“At one time we had so many calls for medical emergencies that we couldn’t do assistance for tows for convenience,” Brusate said. “We had to handle all of the medical emergencies first.”

But finding a “blue and white raft near the Bean Dock,” for example, was difficult in a sea of similar-looking rafts.

“People would wave us down as we were searching for a medical because they needed a tow,” Brusate said. “When we said we are looking for a medical emergency, they would get unhappy. The majority of rafters were unable or unwilling to help themselves get out of danger. There might be a raft with 15 or 20 tubes tied together and only one or two people paddling.”

St. Clair County Sheriff Deputy Steve Campau said there are no missing floaters reported as of Monday morning despite the chaos.

Campau said the sheriff department also did not issue any arrests or citations on the water, but the marine division, dive team and other supporting agencies towed hundreds of people back into American waters during the Float Down.

Port Huron Police Department did not make any arrests related to the event either, but did issue about 50 parking tickets to cars parked illegally around Lighthouse Beach and in Palmer Park.

Port Huron Fire Operations Chief Dan Mainguy said Port Huron first responders made contact with about 800 people, but only 69 actually received assistance to get back to shore. He said of those, three were transported to a hospital: one for an injury, one for pregnancy contractions and another for chest pains.

Campau said the St. Clair County Sheriff Department won't have a total cost of the resources it took to support the event until the end of the week. He said the department will need to figure out how many marine division and dive team members were on hand, the pay rate of each, along with the amount of gas used for their motor vessels. On top of that, Campau said each team, including the U.S. and Canadian coast guards, and participating police and fire agencies, will each have their own additional cost as well.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Ben Chamberlain said for an unsanctioned event, the Float Down went really well.

“No lives lost,” Chamberlain said. “We had a few people who got separated from their parties, but as of (Monday) everyone is accounted for.”

Chamberlain said the U.S. Coast Guard saved 40 lives and assisted about 125 people back to shore who were unable to do so themselves.

“We had winds out of the southwest that blew people to the Canadian shoreline, but we worked with the St. Clair County Sheriff Department and Canadian Coast Guard to coordinate that,” Chamberlain said. “Due to the length of the course and the rain we did have some people experience hypothermia but we were able to get on scene quickly and coordinate with EMS.”

The U.S. Coast Guard has made several attempts to work with the city of Port Huron to make the Port Huron Float Down a sanctioned, organized event.

“There are still several details to work out,” Chamberlain said. “There would need to be an official event sponsor and as of yet no one has stepped up to do that and take on the responsibility of all of the safety issues.”

In the meantime, Chamberlain said they will continue to shut down the St. Clair River to vessel traffic each year and provide support where needed.

According to the Port Huron Float Down Facebook page, next year's event will be Aug. 20.

Contact Nicole Hayden at (810) 989-6279 or nhayden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @nicoleandpig.