Crews responded to a report about a kayaker that went missing in Carter Lake around 5 p.m. Thursday.

They had not found the man by 8 p.m., and their efforts had switched from rescue to recovery.

“We’ll keep searching as long as we can, but we do switch from rescue operation to recovery operation,” said Berthoud Fire Division Chief Andrew Kuiken, adding that the first hour of a rescue is the most critical.

A person recreating at the lake called for help after seeing “a man in the water who appeared to be in distress,” according to a release from the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office. The man was near a kayak and not wearing a personal flotation device.

An off-duty Loveland Fire Rescue Authority firefighter, who was in the area, began searching for the man and was soon joined by Larimer C

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