Accident Database

Report ID# 2697

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  • PFD Not Worn or Present
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Accident Description

Man dies in rafting accident

By JOE NICKELL of the Missoulian

A Missoula man was missing and presumed dead in the Blackfoot River on Sunday, despite a massive search undertaken by multiple agencies. Missoula County Sheriff Mike McMeekin said the man likely drowned after the raft in which he was riding capsized around 7 p.m. Saturday evening near Bonner. “There was a confirmed sighting of the (man's body) floating several miles downstream from where the accident happened,” said McMeekin. “So it is a recovery operation at this point, rather than a rescue.”

A female passenger in the raft was able to swim to shore after the accident; another male passenger had to be rescued from a gravel bar by Missoula County Search and Rescue personnel. The missing man, whose identity is being withheld pending notification of relatives, was swept down the river. None of the floaters were wearing personal floatation devices.

“We've had boats on the river all day (Sunday) looking for him, and searchers walking the banks of the river,” said McMeekin. “We even had Search and Rescue personnel rappel down on ropes from the temporary bridge in Bonner, to search the debris piles in the river. Despite all that, so far, we haven't found him.” By late Sunday, officials had expanded the search to include portions of the Clark Fork River, extending all the way to Brennan's Wave in downtown Missoula. Agencies including Missoula Search and Rescue, the East Missoula Fire Department, Missoula Rural Fire, Missoula City Fire, the Montana Department of Transportation and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks all joined in the search. “It's been a real community effort,” said McMeekin. “A lot of people gave up their Sunday to try and help out.”

McMeekin said the accident indicates just how dangerous area rivers remain, as late runoff and an unusually heavy winter snowpack have kept flows high and water temperatures low. The Blackfoot River near Bonner, for example, was running at 4,020 cubic feet per second on Sunday - more than 50 percent above the long-term median flow of 2,660 for June 29. “It's a huge concern going into the (Independence Day) holiday weekend,” said McMeekin. “The rivers are high, the water's cold, there's a lot of debris in the river - debris that people can't see in many instances, but that can wreck havoc on a raft or inner tube. “People really need to be wearing personal floatation devices, and they should wear helmets as well, whenever they go on the rivers right now,” McMeekin advised. “People really need to make sure they know what they're doing - at least until the rivers slow down and drop and warm up. I can't emphasize that enough.”

Police identify rafting accident victim
By TRISTAN SCOTT of the Missoulian

KIMO JACKSON, 27, 6/28

Authorities have suspended the search for a 27-year-old Missoula man who presumably drowned while rafting on the Blackfoot River over the weekend.

Missoula County Sheriff Mike McMeekin identified the probable victim as Kimo Jackson, of the Missoula area.

Jackson likely drowned after the raft he was riding in capsized at around 7 p.m. on Saturday near Bonner, McMeekin said. There was a confirmed sighting of his body floating several miles downstream from where the accident happened.McMeekin halted the intensive, multiagency search operation at 11 a.m. Monday after expanding the search area to include portions of the Clark Fork River. A red rescue boat could be seen Monday morning zigzagging up and down the Clark Fork near downtown Missoula, stopping occasionally to investigate clots of floating debris.

Missoula County Sheriff's Detective David Brenner, who helped direct the search operation, said rescue teams searched stretches of the Clark Fork as far downriver as Kelly Island, near the confluence with the Bitterroot River. “We have covered a considerable stretch of the river, and have basically exhausted every area we can safely search right now,” Brenner said. “We're kind of at the mercy of the river right now, and the river is just flowing too fast and too high.”

Brenner said late runoff and a heavy winter snowpack have kept flows high and water temperatures low. Those elements have combined to create dangerous conditions for floaters, and have made it impossible for search and rescue boats to navigate numerous side channels. Log jams and other debris have also made stretches of the river dangerous and unnavigable. Cadaver dogs dropped off by boat onto several islands in the area also could not locate the body.

Agencies, including Missoula Search and Rescue, the East Missoula Fire Department, Missoula Rural Fire, Missoula City Fire, the Montana Department of Transportation and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, all joined in the search.

A female passenger in the same raft as Jackson was able to swim to shore after the accident, while another male passenger had to be rescued from a gravel bar by Missoula County Search and Rescue crews. Jackson was swept downriver.

None of the floaters were wearing personal floatation devices, and their raft was not designed for the kind of high-water conditions occurring on western Montana's streams and rivers, McMeekin said.

“The more we can emphasize basic safety and common sense the better chance we have of getting through this weekend,” McMeekin said. “People need to wear personal flotation devices and buckle them. They need good gear, a good raft, good oars, and good knowledge of what they're doing. These $9.99 rafts with a couple of plastic paddles are not going to pack it right now. The water is too fast and there's too much debris, and you can't see it until you're right on top of it.”

McMeekin said he will resume search efforts when the water levels go down, or in the event that another sighting is reported.


Archived Story Missoula man missing, presumed drowned after rafting accident on Blackfoot River; officials expand search to include Clark Fork
Posted on June 29


By JOE NICKELL of the Missoulian

A Missoula man was missing and presumed dead in the Blackfoot River on Sunday, despite a massive search undertaken by multiple agencies.

Missoula County Sheriff Mike McMeekin said the man likely drowned after the raft in which he was riding capsized around 7 p.m. Saturday evening near Bonner.

“There was a confirmed sighting of the (man’s body) floating several miles downstream from where the accident happened,” said McMeekin. “So it is a recovery operation at this point, rather than a rescue.” A female passenger in the raft was able to swim to shore after the accident; another male passenger had to be rescued from a gravel bar by Missoula County Search and Rescue personnel. The missing man, whose identity is being withheld pending notification of relatives, was swept down the river.

None of the floaters were wearing personal floatation devices.

“We’ve had boats on the river all day (Sunday) looking for him, and searchers walking the banks of the river,” said McMeekin. “We even had Search and Rescue personnel rappel down on ropes from the temporary bridge in Bonner, to search the debris piles in the river. Despite all that, so far, we haven’t found him.”

By late Sunday, officials had expanded the search to include portions of the Clark Fork River, extending all the way to Brennan’s Wave in downtown Missoula. Agencies including Missoula Search and Rescue, the East Missoula Fire Department, Missoula Rural Fire, Missoula City Fire, the Montana Department of Transportation, and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks all joined in the search.

“It’s been a real community effort,” said McMeekin. “A lot of people gave up their Sunday to try and help out.”

McMeekin said the accident indicates just how dangerous area rivers remain, as late runoff and an unusually heavy winter snowpack have kept flows high and water temperatures low. The Blackfoot River near Bonner, for example, was running at 4,020 cubic feet per second on Sunday and more than 50 percent above the long-term median flow of 2,660 for June 29.

“It’s a huge concern going into the (Independence Day) holiday weekend,” said McMeekin. “The rivers are high, the water’s cold, there’s a lot of debris in the river n debris that people can’t see in many instances, but that can wreck havoc on a raft or inner tube.”

“People really need to be wearing personal floatation devices, and they should wear helmets as well, whenever they go on the rivers right now,” McMeekin advised. “People really need to make sure they know what they’re doing n at least until the rivers slow down and drop and warm up. I can’t emphasize that enough.”


 

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