4 kayakers rescued in Mosquito Lagoon

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office says deputies responded to Mosquito Lagoon Sunday night after two adults and two children got lost kayaking. 

In a 911 call, a woman told the dispatcher, “We keep getting lost in the canals and I have my grandkids with me and it’s getting dark – that’s why I called.” 

The Sheriff’s Office sent a helicopter, with flight paramedic Matt Brunelle on board.  Brunelle says after zeroing in on the kayaks, they determined it was too shallow for a boat to get to the group, so he jumped out of the chopper. 

“He got down to about five feet from the water, I crawled out onto the skid of the aircraft and I jumped right down onto a sandbar,” he said. 

Brunelle says while wading through the water, he had to deal with mosquitoes and sea life but he got to the kayakers and helped pull them to an FWC boat. Everyone was okay.