(NEWS CENTER) -- Two men died while kayaking off the coast of Mount Desert Island Wednesday and one woman is recovering at the hospital from hypothermia after their boats capsized.
The two deceased men are Edward Brackett, 63, of Birch Harbor, and Michael Popper, 54, of Plainfield, New Jersey. Popper's wife, Jennifer, survived, after clinging to her capsized boat for five hours.
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A lobsterman, who helped in their search effort, said the three kayakers were part of an organized kayak tour and one of the men who died was the tour guide.
Officials say high seas and cold water temperatures played a role in the two deaths. The Coast Guard says all the three kayakers departed from Corea Harbor.
The wife of one kayaker called the Coast Guard after her husband and the two others did not return as planned.
Rescue crews were sent out by boat and helicopter to search for the missing three. Around 8:00 p.m. a good Samaritan found Jennifer Popper clinging to her overturned boat between Cranberry Point and Petit Manan Island.
She told investigators that passing weather brought on waves three to five feet high, causing the kayaks to capsize in 52 degree water.
All members of the party were wearing life vests.
Jennifer Popper is recovering from hypothermia at Eastern Maine Medical Center. Her husband, Michael, and Edward Brackett were found shortly thereafter by lobstermen. Both were unresponsive and were later pronounced dead.