Canadian city might have to pay after rescuing stranded Americans

Is it too late now to say sorry?

This year, however, the unofficial and unsanctioned annual event became an accidental invasion as 1,500 of the revelers drifted into the Canadian side of the St. Clair River and needed rescuing.

The city of Sarnia, Ontario, is likely on the hook to pay police, firefighters and transit workers.

The Yanks were taking part in the Port Huron Float Down – an annual tradition that sees thousands of participants from the MI side drift down the river on tubes and other floating things.

Hit with sudden rain and winds, the Americans veered off course to Sarnia, Ontario.

Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley didn’t sound exactly charmed by what he called the “over-refreshed” American visitors.

Sarnia Transit gave rides to US citizens back over the border at a cost of $1,977.97. Some of them were chanting “USA, USA” as they washed ashore, he told the Canadian Press.

Bradley said it was the right call for the city to drive the stranded Americans home.

Many of those pulled to shore were drunk, had varying degrees of hypothermia and some even dangerously tried to swim back across, fearing they’d be charged for being in Canada illegally. The rafters planned to float from Port Huron, Michigan, to Marysville, Michigan, for the annual Port Huron Float Down.

The problem is the event is unsponsored, and without a sponsor, the city’s mayor is left wondering who to charge. “But they deserve to be reimbursed”, wrote the campaign creator, Joe Wiedenbeck.

But Bradley is not asking for that money back, although a fundraising campaign – started by an American – had raised more than US$2,300 by Wednesday afternoon.

As of Thursday morning the campaign had raised $3,870 of its $9,000 goal.

Wiedenbeck asked the float down participants to donate $5.