Two fishermen were on a boat preparing their rods for walleye during the morning of September 11, on Lake Erie, when they heard a noise and recognized it was someone yelling for help.
Kayaker Survives By Clinging To Broken Bucket
According to 19 News in Cleveland, the anglers Larry Smith and Charles Steven were in the area of the city’s drinking water intake, known as Five-Mile Crib, when they heard the distress cry. At first, they couldn’t see anything, then they drove the boat out further and saw an arm wave in the air.
“This time when we see it, we see an arm come up out of the water, and then the arm goes back into the water,” Smith told 19 News.
The anglers had stumbled upon kayaker James Manning, who had been reported missing around 6:30 p.m. the evening before. Wearing no lifejacket or layers besides his shorts, the most shocking revelation the two fishermen witnessed was that the kayaker had survived by grasping to a bucket he found floating in the lake.
“The bucket is what was keeping him afloat,” Steven, who was driving the boat, told 19 News. “I guess he was probably tired. It was like he had a death grip on that bucket. I shut the boat down. Smith grabbed him first by the arm, and then I went around and grabbed his other arm. Then we pulled him in the boat. I had a jacket and put it around him. I said you alright, you want me to call 911?”
The kayaker asked if, instead, he could first call his girlfriend of eight years to let her know he was alive.
A kayaker goes missing on Lake Erie
A news story published by Cleveland.com shared that Manning had left home around 5 p.m. Tuesday to go kayaking — launching from Merwin’s Wharf on the Cuyahoga River. Manning intended to paddle the mile-and-a-half down the Cuyahoga to Lake Erie and back. Then he decided to change his plan and try to reach the Five-Mile Crib about three miles offshore.
Around 6:30 p.m., Manning’s girlfriend, Lindsay Longforth, texted to see how his kayak trip was going. She didn’t receive a response, and she followed up. This time, the messages were not delivered. Fortunately, she knew where he had embarked from and checked on the status of his vehicle, as well as notified the authorities something was wrong.
The police were able to track his phone’s last position five miles from the Great Lake-side community of Lakewood and searched the area using helicopters and drones until 3 a.m. With helicopters circling above, Manning was in the water and in a fight for his life.
A fight to survive
According to Manning’s interview with Cleveland.com, the ordeal began when his kayak started taking on water near Five-Mile Crib. Waves started to splash over the boat, and Manning suspects a crack or defect may have been the culprit for his sinking ship. Depending on the type of boat, a kayak can also sink from water entering through the drain plug on the stern if it has not been closed or a hatch is left open. Or if it is a sit-inside kayak and no skirt is worn to keep water out.
“I didn’t realize how much water had come in the kayak until it was too late,” Manning said. “It sunk on me immediately.”
According to the article, Manning tried to bring the kayak back to the surface, but the account makes it appear Manning was unsure of the source of sinking. Without a bilge pump or something else, it would be difficult to empty the water fast enough to self-rescue.
From the account, it also appears Manning did not have his phone in a floating case or dry bag he could hang on to. Whether through water damage or sinking, it went down with the ship.
Once his kayak sank, Manning started swimming the miles toward shore. He made multiple attempts, coming within what he believed was a half-mile and, at one point, even 20 yards from shore before currents carried him back out.
At one point, he shared with the interviewer a moment he recalled his relatives who fought in World War II, including one who had survived a torpedoed ship and told himself, “If Uncle John could spend 10 days in a lifeboat in the North Atlantic, I can do a night on Lake Erie.”
James Manning’s small floating miracle
Without a life jacket and failing to reach land, Manning was left treading in the massive freshwater lake. All told the kayaker believes he spent seven hours trying to stay afloat. At times, his head began to slip under the surface, and he even took in some water.
Then, a miracle floated along. A cracked bucket Manning clung to for what little buoyancy it had.
After a few more hours holding onto the bucket, Manning floated into his second small miracle—a couple of guys out for some walleye.
Feature Image: 19 News
“Once his kayak sank, Manning started swimming the miles toward shore. He made multiple attempts, coming within what he believed was a half-mile and, at one point, even 20 yards from shore before currents carried him back out.” I call BS on this, and many other parts of the story. There’s no way he swam nearly 4 miles in from the crib, and then got carried back out again. Also, kayaks don’t just suddenly sink. Did he hit an iceberg, LOL. Apparently, his friends went to Merwin’s Wharf to find his car there, with the keys in it. By the time he would’ve gotten to the lake, it would’ve been almost dark, yet he decides to paddle out to the crib without a PFD, light or anything else? Where did his paddle go? Dude is LUCKY. but not too smart.