Swimmers and water fans treated the St. Clair River as their own lazy river Sunday, much to the dismay of boaters who were banned from part of the river from 12pm until 8pm.
Hundreds of people participated in the Port Huron Float Down, an annual event in which people float on a section of the river on either side of the Blue Water Bridge, beginning at Port Huron's Lighthouse Park and ending in Marysville, Michigan. Participants used rafts, innertubes, and other flotation devices.
Last year's event was better known for high winds which forced hundreds of American floaters to become marooned on the Canadian side of the river, some without identification. The unexpected invasion of floaters resulted in a logjam at the CBSA's Sarnia border checkpoint.
This year featured a lot less people blown to the Canadian side of the river, while dozens decided to get into the water on the Canadian side of the waterway
Two people had been arrested as of 7:30pm. One was for disorderly conduct and the other had been challenging a rescuer.
Spokesperson Carol Launderville of the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans says Ontario Provincial Police helped one Canadian woman who had trouble staying above water. An American woman and two teenagers were rescued by the Canadian Coast Guard after their dinghy deflated. They were not hurt.
As of 9pm, it was reported that at least 168 people needed help getting back on their devices or wanted to be guided back to shore.
The OPP and the RCMP were among the agencies patrolling the Float Down.
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