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Accident Database: Accident #618

River: Quinnipiac River
Section: near the Cheshire town line
Location: Dam just below a pipeline that feeds the Broad Brook Reservoir
Water Level: High
Difficulty: VI
Accident Code(s): Lowhead Dam
Injury Code(s): Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal
Age: 34
Experienced/Inexperienced: Inexperienced
Private/Commercial: Private
Boat Type: Other
Number of Occupants: 1
Number of Victims: 1
Initial Report: On September 17th, the rains of Hurricane Floyd had passed through New England, raising many river levels past flood stage. Paul Santoni, 34, decided to paddle the Quinnipiac River near Cheshire, Connecticut with a friend. According to Edwin Miles, a local paddler familiar with the river, the Quinnipiac is a benign little river with a few rapids in the Class I-II range. The pair was using sea kayaks, and paddling with life vests and helmets but no sprayskirts. The accident occurred where a pipeline crosses the river, creating a small drop. The high water turned it into a, very nasty hydraulic, much like a low-head dam. The pair attempted the run, capsized, and became trapped in the backwash. They clung to their kayaks and screamed for help. Eventually a homeowner heard them, investigated, and called 911. The victim’s friend managed grab hold of an overhanging tree limb until firefighters arrived. But Mr. Santoni lost his grip on his boat and was quickly swept under water.
Detailed Description:

The Quinnipiac River near Cheshire, CT is a very benign river with very little whitewater. There are probably no more than one or two stretches of Class II. But unfortunately two paddlers chose to paddle on September 17, 1999, during the flood waters left by a hurricane. The storm was over but the river was still rising.

 

 

Paul Santoni, 34, was an avid outdoorsman. He and his friend, Adam Jandreau, put in about a quarter-mile upstream. They had run the river many times before. They were using sea kayaks without sprayskirts, and wearing a helmet and life jacket. The Connecticut DEP had issued warnings that the river was above flood levels, but it wasn't clear that the pair was aware of this.

 

 

The stretch they ran has an outflow pipe that is normally visible and easily run. Because of the high water the pipe acted like a low-head dam and created a bad hydraulic . The two ran the pipeline, and became caught below the drop. Jandreau fell out of his kayak. He struggled to stay above the water by alternately wading and grasping his boat. A few seconds later Santoni also flipped. The two struggled in the backwash for about ten minutes. They both clung to their kayaks, and yelled for help above the roar of the rushing water.

 

 

The first person respond was Jandreau's landlord, Randy Porter. He asked how many there were and they said two. Porter placed a 911 call, but the two would have to remain in the water for at another ten minutes.

 

 

Jandreau managed to grab an overhanging tree limb, and turned to help his friend, but Santoni lost his grip on his kayak and was swept away underwater.

 

 

SOURCE: Ed Milnes (president of ConnYak); The Meriden Record-Journal; the Hartford Courant

 

 

 

Conclusions:

ANALYSIS: (Walbridge) Although the pair were aquatinted with the river at normal flows, they were not skilled whitewater paddlers. They lacked the skill and the gear needed to run the river at those flows. They also failed to read the water and recognize the dangers of the pipeline drop.

 

 

Report Status: Completed