Tour group of 33 stranded kayakers, including children, rescued from cave on Tennessee lake

A group of 33 kayakers consisting of adults and children were saved after being stranded inside a cave on a Tennessee lake, according to authorities.

The Haletown Volunteer Fire Department responded to the Nickajack Cave Wildlife Area near Chattanooga on Monday around 8:42 p.m. for "a mass water rescue," the department said in a Facebook post.

When the volunteer firefighters arrived, they were helped by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), Puckett EMS and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in rescuing the kayakers.

"The tour group had become stranded in the high winds and choppy waters forming ahead of today's storm," according to the volunteer firefighters' Facebook post.

The kayakers were on tour with a private organization, the TWRA told USA TODAY on Wednesday in an email. They became "stranded on a bank" due to the "extremely high winds," the agency added.

How did the 33 kayakers become stranded?

The Nickajack cave tour group departed from the Macedonia Road boat ramp earlier Monday evening, paddling across the lake to the Nickajack cave, the TWRA said in a news release.

During their tour, "harsh conditions and high winds quickly challenged the kayakers," prompting few of them to enter the water, the agency said.

Once the entire group made it to shore near the Nickajack cave, they called for emergency assistance, according to the TWRA's release. Emergency responders, including the TWRA and Haletown Volunteer Fire, tried using a boat to rescue the kayakers, the independent state agency said.

"However, the vessel was small, and it was capsized by winds before disconnecting from the trailer," the TWRA said in the release. "TWRA officers were able to ferry kayakers to shore, where they were tended to by medical personnel."

No injuries resulted from the incident, according to Haletown Volunteer Fire and the TWRA.

'Life jackets were a key safety factor," TWRA boating officer says

All 33 kayakers were wearing life jackets, which may have saved their lives, according to the TWRA.

“This is a great example of the importance of life jackets," TWRA Boating Officer David Holt said in a news release. "With water temperatures in the mid-50s and high windspeeds, life jackets were a key safety factor.”

In TWRA's email to USA TODAY, the agency wanted to "remind all boaters of the importance of wearing a life jacket, checking weather and water conditions, and filing a float plan (letting someone know when you’ll be home and where you’re going)."

Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]