Dad clinging to flipped raft vanishes in river after son swims to shore, CO cops say
The search is on for a missing man last seen clinging to an overturned raft on a Colorado river, according to a sheriff’s office.
The man entered the Colorado River with his son, intending to raft to the New Castle area on Sunday, June 25, the Garfield County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release posted to Facebook.
However, shortly after they entered the river, their raft flipped, throwing the pair near Grizzly Creek in the Glenwood Canyon, deputies said. The son swam to shore but witnesses reported seeing the father continuing “down the river holding on to the capsized raft.”
The Glenwood Springs Fire Department searched the river “on both banks from the Grizzly Creek Rest area to Two Rivers Park in Glenwood Springs,” the sheriff’s department said. Search and rescue also searched the area.
Deputies said firefighters suspended their search after two hours while search and rescue members continued looking for the man until about 8 p.m.
The sheriff’s office said it along with search and rescue will continue to search the area for the missing 65-year-old man.
Deputies advised those who plan to “enjoy all the white water challenges” on the river should always wear a personal flotation device and helmet, adding that “someone on shore or at home” should know the area you plan to visit.
In May, the sheriff’s office warned that the river was “reaching peak water flows” after a man died rafting with friends, McClatchy News previously reported. The river’s “extreme conditions” were expected to continue for the next four to six weeks as snow melts in the high country and “water flows to the valley floors.”
The river at Grizzly Creek Section of Glenwood Canyon has “friendly and mellow at low flows,” according to the nonprofit American Whitewater. However, at higher water, “things can become a bit pushier.”
Grizzly Creek to Two Rivers Park “is one of the more popular runs in Colorado for kayaks, canoes, and rafts,” according to a blog post from Colorado Mesa University. Typically, the run is considered Class II “but at high water it is a Class III,” meaning it requires some technical skill.
Glenwood Springs is about 170 miles southwest of Denver.
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