Stranded family rescued from remote beach on Tomales Bay

TOMALES BAY -- A family of four was airlifted Saturday afternoon after becoming stranded on a remote Tomales Bay beach while enjoying an afternoon of kayaking.

The Sonoma County Sheriff's department said it got a call from Marin firefighters asking for deputies to deploy their helicopter to airlift a stranded family.

The family of four -- two adults and two children -- were forced to beach their kayaks after the waters of the Bay became choppy.

A bystander had called 911 reporting they were watching two kayaks being swept out to sea in rough surf.

"Due to Sonoma County's proximity to Tomales Bay, and the dangerous sea conditions that exist in and around the Tomales Bay area, H1 provides mutual aid," Sonoma deputies said of the call for assistance.

After arriving in the area, the helicopter's aircrew began a search for the reported kayakers. They located the kayakers a short time later who were now stranded on the west shore of Tomales Bay.

"Due to the remoteness of the location, and rough seas, the kayakers were internally loaded into H1 and flown to safety in the Lawson's Landing area," deputies said.

No injuries were reported.