Kayaker Dies After Capsizing Saturday In Cape Waters

CAPE COD, MA — A 22-year-old man is dead after the kayak he was paddling overturned Saturday afternoon off Wellfleet.

The town’s emergency services responded to a call at 6:05 p.m. about a kayaker in distress, according to a statement Sunday from the Wellfleet Fire Department. The individual was said to be wearing a green life jacket and drifting in the current.

First responders from the town, neighboring communities and the Coast Guard immediately launched a joint search, and spotted the kayaker at 8:02 p.m. He was brought to shore, transported in critical condition to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, and later pronounced dead.

Officials on Sunday afternoon hadn't disclosed the man’s name, pending notification of his family.

Among the responders that teamed up in the search: Wellfleet firefighters, police, harbormaster personnel and shellfish warden; Eastham fire, police and harbormaster crews; and the Truro Fire Department. The Coast Guard also deployed a helicopter to assist in the search.

The death follows the loss of a fishing vessel, the Yankee Rose, off the Cape on March 5. Two men died in that sinking.