By Thane Grauel

WESTPORT — Emergency workers scrambled to Compo Beach and the waters near Cockenoe Island on Wednesday afternoon after three rowing sculls and a chase boat took on water following a sudden change in the weather.

Two of the sculls capsized, throwing 18 of the young rowers from the Saugatuck Rowing Club — who ranged in age from 14 to 18 — into the frigid water. In all, 27 rowers and two coaches were involved in the incident. All but a second coach who dashed to the scene in a second chase boat had to be rescued.

“This was a very serious incident with an incredibly good outcome,” Police Chief Foti Koskinas said at a Wednesday night press conference at Police Department headquarters.

At 5:06 p.m., authorities were notified of “numerous people in the water after a boat they were operating capsized.”

“Responding units found a chaotic scene of youths swimming to shore,” he said. “Some of them were arriving by boat, some were swimming, some were still in the water between Compo Beach and Cockenoe Island.”

Koskinas said first responders began providing care to those reaching shore and helped to coordinate rescue operations for those still in the water — some for nearly an hour.

“Two individuals were transported to a local hospital for treatment,” he said.

Marc Hartog, deputy director of the town’s Emergency Medical Services, said the rowers were suffering from varying degrees of hypothermia. Other than exposure to cold water, he said, no one had other injuries.

The air temperature was 40 degrees. The water was 44, Koskinas said.

“The initial investigation indicates that three rowing sculls and one chase boat launched from Saugatuck Rowing Club a little before 5 p.m.,” he said.

The sculls each hold nine rowers and are about 60 feet long. The coach operated the chase boat. The ages of the rowers ranged from 14 to 18, Koskinas said.

“When the boats reached the area of Cockenoe Island the weather began to change,” he said. “The rowers attempted to return to the rowing club. The rowing sculls began to take on water, causing two of them to capsize, throwing 18 individuals in the water.”

“These individuals swam to the chase boat and began to hang to the side of the boat, which caused the chase boat to sink as well,” Koskinas said. “Another chase boat from the rowing club arrived and began to shuttle people to Compo Beach.”

A Westport Fire Department boat and a police boat each scooped up six more.

Mass casualty response

Leaders quickly organized a huge response to the mass casualty incident. It’s the type of incident first responders train for, and drill for. Assistance was called in from neighboring towns with marine units. The Norwalk police and fire marine units responded. So did marine units from Stamford police, Darien police and the Noroton Fire Department. The U.S. Coast Guard also responded.

In addition to Westport EMS, ambulances from Norwalk Hospital, American Medical Response and the Darien Emergency Medical Service responded. There were eight ambulances and 20 personnel.

School officials sent a school bus to Compo for the youngsters to be counted and eventually taken back to the rowing club on Riverside Avenue.

“This was truly an incredible team effort by all,” Koskinas said. “By the coaches that were involved from the rowing club, by all the first responders. Speaking for all of our emergency services, I couldn’t be more proud of the work that was done out there. But what’s most important is that all 29 people that left the rowing club are safe with their families.”

Deputy Fire Chief Nicholas Marsan said that Assistant Fire Chief Matt Cohen set up a command post and coordinated the rescue, called in other agencies for assistance, and notified the hospital of the situation.

“We hope that all the families, all the kids, all the athletes, are reunited and are feeling safe, and are feeling well taken care of,” First Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker said.

“I want to say thank you to this amazing leadership team that stands behind me,” she said. “We are so blessed with a professional group of first responders here in Westport … things could have gone very differently tonight, but they didn’t because we have an excellent Police Department, Fire Department and EMS department.”

Questions remain

Asked if the rowers had flotation devices, Koskinas said that would be part of the investigation.

“There were victims coming out with life preservers, we can’t tell you how many of them had it,” he said. “We have at this point seized whatever we think is going to be used as evidence.”

“And when I say evidence, please understand that this is not going to be at this point, we’re not looking for punitive or violations of the law. It could very well be that that’s the case, this is how do we prevent this from ever happening again.”

Some of the rowers were in the water from about 5:06 p.m. to around 6 p.m., when the last one was rescued.

National Weather Service records show the winds around the time of the incident changing from 6 mph out of the west up to 16 mph, with gusts up to 31. On the water, wind makes waves, which aren’t kind to paddle craft such as sculls and canoes.

Young rower tells how it happened

The Saugatuck Rowing Club draws members from many nearby communities.

Davis Evans, a 16-year-old Weston High School junior, was one of the rowers who found himself up to his neck in cold saltwater. A rower for four years, he came to the press conference with his father.

“It was a nice day, glass water,” he told reporters after the press conference. “We were pretty far out and as soon as we spun back the conditions got really rough and we rowed for maybe a hundred meters before water came into our boat.”

“We realized we weren’t getting back and the boat started sinking,” he said.

The sudden swells were 2 to 3 feet, he said.

“There were no signs of bad weather until it was there,” Davis said.

He said a coach named Alex got some of the rowers from another scull onto his chase boat.

“He came back for us but didn’t have enough space on the boat to handle all those guys,” Davis said.

So they held onto the side as the coach tried to get back to Compo, “but the boat just couldn’t handle it so the boat began to sink.”

“Before the crash boat sank I called 911,” he said. “I couldn’t really hear because it was so chaotic. I was like, ‘Mayday, we’re out at Compo Beach off of Cockenoe Island!’”

He eventually got a ride to shore from the second chase boat.

“It was really cold,” he said. “I couldn’t really talk when we finally got up on the beach I was really happy.

“When we got back up on the beach we had to run, and we were falling and stuff,” Davis said. “We couldn’t really walk.”

Initial symptoms of hypothermia include shivering, impaired speech and physical clumsiness. After that, the situation can quickly become more dire.

Watch video of survivor’s tale here.

Asked if he was as calm as he was at the press conference when he was out of the water, he said, “definitely not.”

“I’d like to say I did a good job of keeping my cool, but it was really scary,” Davis said. “I’m still kind of shaken up and it really hasn’t sunken in yet.”

He said one of the other sculls had older rowers in it, and everyone kept it together.

“I was impressed by the level of maturity,” he said.

Thane Grauel grew up in Westport and has been a journalist in Fairfield County and beyond for 36 years. Reach him at editor@westportjournal.com. Learn more about us here.