Virginia teens rescue family after kayaks capsize on Lake Culpeper
CULPEPER, Va. - Three Eastern View High School students are being credited with saving a family after their kayaks capsized on Lake Culpeper.
The incident happened July 27 around 3:30 p.m. in the water between December Court and the intake area of the Lake Culpeper Dam. Andrew Tuggle, 15, Jackson Castro, 17, and Gavin Cain, 17, were on the adjacent Culpeper Country Club golf course for team tryouts when they spotted the overturned kayaks.
Virginia teens rescue family after kayaks capsize on Lake Culpeper. Gavin Cain, 17 (left), Andrew Tuggle, 15, (middle), and Jackson Castro, 17 (right) (Town of Culpeper Police Department)
The teens called 911, alerted coaching staff and immediately jumped into the lake, swimming out to reach the family. They brought two adults and a child safely to shore, then returned to retrieve the kayaks. Authorities arrived and confirmed no one remained in the water. All three kayakers were wearing life jackets and were uninjured.
"These three young men saw someone in danger and acted immediately, without hesitation, at potentially great personal risk to themselves," Chief of Police Christopher Settle said. "That kind of courage and quick thinking is what saved three lives on Monday."
The Culpeper Police Department and Culpeper County Public Schools formally commended the teens for their bravery and quick thinking, saying their actions prevented a tragedy.
Virginia teens rescue family after kayaks capsize on Lake Culpeper. (Town of Culpeper Police Department)
The Source: Information in this article comes from the Town of Culpeper Police Department.