Thousands entered the St. Clair River at Lighthouse Beach in Port Huron, Michigan for the annual float down Sunday.
The Canadian Coast Guard was one of several agencies on patrol during the event. Acting Search and Rescue Superintendent Kathleen Getty, who served as incident commander for the unsanctioned event, said participation was down.
"We were a little surprised. We thought there would be more floaters being that it was such a lovely day, but we maybe had 2,000 floaters, compared to past years where we had 5,000 and 6,000," she said. "I like to think that people are starting to recognize how inherently dangerous this event is and maybe make the decision to not take part."
Getty said they assisted with a total of about 33 lives during the event, adding that no cases required life-saving measures.
She said the wind kept Canadians on the east side of the river and Americans on the west side, right where they should be.
"We did have more kayakers I found this year which is probably one of the more prudent methods for taking part in the float down, because you do have the ability to paddle and propel yourself out of danger."
The U.S. Coast Guard, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Ontario Provincial Police, Sarnia police, and Sarnia Fire and Rescue were also patrolling during the float down.
Vessel traffic on the St. Clair River was restricted from the Blue Water Bridge to the upper end of Stag Island during the event.
In previous years, upwards of 5,000 people have taken part in the 12 kilometre float down the river to Marysville Beach.
-with files from Melanie Irwin
