Accident Database: Accident #761
| River: | Payette, N. Fork |
| Section: | 4. Smiths Ferry to Banks |
| Location: | Jaws Rapid |
| Difficulty: | V |
| Accident Code(s): | Long Swim (L.S.) |
| Injury Code(s): | Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal, Fatal |
| Age: | 35 |
| Experienced/Inexperienced: | Experienced |
| Years Paddling: | >10 |
| Private/Commercial: | Private |
| Boat Type: | Raft |
| Number of Occupants: | 1 |
| Number of Victims: | 1 |
| Initial Report: | 08-25-2002 FRONT PAGE Boater drowns on Payette River Man thrown from cataraft at Jaw Rapids A 35-year-old North Idaho man drowned Saturday morning while rafting a treacherous stretch of the North Fork of the Payette River along Idaho 55. Boise County Sheriff Sgt. George Erskine said the man was operating a 16-foot cataraft at Jaws Rapids about 20 miles north of Horseshoe Bend when he was thrown from the raft and into the river at about 10:30 a.m. Saturday. The man, described as an expert rafter, floated downstream for almost a mile before other boaters pulled him to shore. Emergency workers and boaters performed CPR for an hour before the man was pronounced dead at the scene, Erskine said. The man´s name was withheld Saturday night pending notification of relatives. He had 25 years of whitewater experience and was wearing a life jacket, helmet and wet suit, Erskine said. He was boating with a large group of friends. It was the man´s first trip on the North Fork, where the rapids have an advanced-level rating of Class V. The North Fork is described by guidebooks and experts as boulder-dense and horizontal with steep drops. Saturday´s accident was the second drowning on the Payette in 10 days. On Aug. 14, a 27-year-old New Zealand woman drowned while rafting the Class IV Staircase Rapids on the South Fork of the Payette. Caroline Granger was with her sister and a friend in an inflatable kayak when she fell out of the craft and into the water. The three women were not wearing life jackets or helmets. On Aug. 16, 1999, a 30-year-old man died while kayaking the North Fork of the Payette below Smiths Ferry. The man, Richard Thomas Carson, was a Briton working in Memphis, Tenn., at the time of the fatal accident. Kayak instructors offer the following tips for river paddling: -- Prepare for cold. Even a hot day doesn´t noticeably change the water temperature of most area rivers. Dress in layers. -- Have a working knowledge of any river or lake before boating, or travel with an experienced guide. -- Use a proper life jacket at all times. -- Don´t drink alcohol. -- Don´t take on stretches of river for which you´re not qualified. Edition Date: 08-25-2002 http://204.228.236.37/story.asp?ID=18650 |
| Link: | http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/225474 |
| Report Status: | Incomplete |