CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – On Saturday, May 22, KaDee Luebke went kayaking on the Red River with her two small children and girlfriend, Lindsey Andreasen.
“We had been kayaking before, but it was the kids’ first time kayaking,” Luebke told Clarksville Now.
They had launched their own kayaks at Red River Canoe Rentals. Luebke described the water as moving, but the current didn’t appear strong, nor was the water level high.
However, the family’s relaxing mosey down the river would soon come to a frightening end when their kayaks overturned in a tangle of branches and downed trees. Thankfully, a group of recent Rossview High School graduates came to their rescue.
First-timers
Luebke said her kids, 5-year-old Corbin and 4-year-old Thea, were nervous at first about kayaking, but they were were enjoying themselves.
The group paddled downstream for about an hour and a half before stopping at a sandy area to take a dip in the water. At this point, Andreasen and Luebke took off their life jackets since it was hot, and, after some swimming, the four loaded up and got back on the river.
“This is the first time we saw Ethan and his friends, but we didn’t talk to them other than a friendly smile. They were also taking a little swim in the water. We started out before them,” Luebke said.
About five minutes later, the current quickened, pulling both kayaks to the right side of the river, where they ran into some branches.
“The kids were instructed to duck. They were scared, but they knew it was just some limbs. However, on the other side of the limbs were these logs that were partly underwater,” Luebke said.
The current pushed them towards the downed logs, and Andreasen’s kayak with Corbin inside got stuck. Then the kayak flipped.
“Both Linsey (Andreasen) and Corbin had already gone under water, but Lindsey was able to grab a hold of him and balance herself with her knees in between the log, getting them out of the water,” Luebke said.
Luckily, the kids were still wearing their life jackets.
Panicked
With Andreasen and little Corbin struggling to stay afloat, Luebke tried to stop her kayak.
“Then me and my daughter Thea were behind them, so we tried to stop a little bit before them so I could at least get Corbin from Lindsey,” Luebke said. “But when that happened, there must have been tree or limbs underwater that we couldn’t see, so my kayak got stuck in between the limbs, and every single time I tried to move, the kayak just filled with water, and then we tipped.”
She was able to grab her daughter and get above water, but was still holding onto the kayak. Before she knew it, the kayak was upside down and the current was strong enough to pull her underwater.
“I could see a man on the left side of the river noticing us and rushing into the water to Lindsey and Corbin. Lindsey was yelling at him to help us, but she and the man yelled at me to just let go of the kayak,” Luebke said.
She let go and was able to get herself and her daughter to a nearby mud bank.
“I had already swallowed a lot of water. I got to the mud (bank), got Thea up on the hill, coughed up a lot of water and then could see the man trying to get the kayak out of the way while Ethan was right there by Lindsey and Corbin.”
Ethan to the rescue
Ethan Robles-Moore, 18, said he was on the river that day with a group of friends. He came around one of the river bends and saw what was happening. He realized he had to help Andreasen and Corbin.
“Nobody else was stopping, so, I mean, someone had to stop,” Robles-Moore said.
He got in the water and headed for the logs. Andreasen was holding Corbin up, and Robles-Moore said she would have to let the boy go to allow him to float downstream a little bit.
“Corbin was hysterical at this point and did not want to listen or talk to anybody. He just wanted out and kept screaming ‘Help’ and freaking out,” Luebke said of her son. “He was obviously terrified, but Ethan’s calm demeanor, and ‘I have you,’ attitude allowed Corbin to trust him enough to float into Ethan’s arms.”
Robles-Moore got Corbin up onto a sandy bank nearby, and his friends helped get Andreasen, Luebke and Thea to that area for safety.
Luebke said at this point, her kids were absolutely not getting back in the kayaks, so Keyana Cole, Robles-Moore’s girlfriend, called Red River Canoe Rental, which provided the number for Adams Fire and Emergency Rescue.
“Keyana not only called Fire and Rescue for us and talked to them so Lindsey and I could focus on calming the kids, but stayed on the phone with them for over an hour,” Luebke said, adding that a field of blackberry bushes made it hard for rescuers to locate them.
Clarksville Now has reached out to Adams Fire and Emergency Rescue for comment.
Luebke said that while the group was waiting, five other kayakers tipped in at that same exact spot, and Robles-Moore ran to help every time.
“I’m not going to just leave them and go down the river,” Robles-Moore told Clarksville Now. “I was happy to be there so I could help them.”
When Adams Fire and Emergency Rescue arrived, the group had to be picked up from the opposite side of the river – meaning they had to either kayak or swim across.
“Ethan offered to walk (Corbin and Thea) across the river for us, if they would let them. Corbin did and made sure to tell him not to forget about his sister,” Luebke said. “He got Corbin to the other side of the river, came back to the other side of the river and got Thea, while Lindsey and I walked our kayaks to the other side. Fire and Rescue were able to get all of us and our kayaks up the hill and into the truck.
“We cannot thank Ethan, Keyana and their group of friends enough,” she said. “There aren’t many seniors in high school that would spend that much time out of their Saturday to provide help and comfort not only when it initially happened, but literally to the point we were in the truck.”
Soon after, Luebke recorded a video of her children for Robles-Moore as a thank you.