Rafter dies in Glenwood Canyon over the weekend;
warning issued for high river dangers this week
A rafter died after falling from his watercraft into the Colorado River through Glenwood Canyon on Sunday. Garfield County Coroner Robert Glassmire confirmed Tuesday morning that Nicholas Courtens, 34, of Vail, was pronounced dead at the scene between Shoshone and Grizzly Creek in Glenwood Canyon after he fell from a raft and drowned.
Glassmire said the Glenwood Springs Fire Department and Garfield County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene at 12:29 p.m. Sunday. “Investigators learned the rafter was part of a private group of five people using two rafts,” Glassmire said in a news release. “The decedent went into the water while the group was navigating a rapid and eddy. Upon exiting the rapid and eddy, the decedent was unable to be initially rescued.” The group was able to pull Courtens to the riverbank where his rafting party and two additional bystanders provided CPR and first aid, but were unable to resuscitate him, Glassmire said. Courtens was wearing a personal flotation device and a helmet at the time of the incident, he said.
An autopsy was performed on Monday by the Coroner’s Office contract forensic pathologist, and the death is being investigated as a drowning, he said.
Meanwhile, Forest Service officials advise that, while the high river flows this spring are being lauded by rafters and kayakers, the high water creates additional challenges and hazards that can be dangerous even for highly experienced rafters and kayakers. “Don’t underestimate the river during high flows or overestimate your abilities,” Colleen Pennington, Glenwood Canyon Manager for the White River National Forest, said in a Monday release. Those hazards can change day-by-day with the rapid river flow, including debris and tree snags that can trap people underwater and puncture rafts, dangerous currents and cold water temperatures that can create dangerous situations for even strong swimmers, she said. “Know your limits,” Pennington said. “The river is unforgiving with high flows. Always wear a life jacket and use proper boats designed for white water — no inner tubes.”
As of Tuesday morning, the Colorado River below the confluence with the Roaring Fork River near Two Rivers Park was flowing at just under 12,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) with a depth of a little over 7.8 feet. That’s well above the historical median of 7,500 cfs and a river depth on this date last year of 5.8 feet, according to the US Geological Survey’s Streamflow data website.
Colorado man drowns while rafting with friends
The Garfield County Sheriff's Office said the rafter was navigating a rapid and eddy when he fell into the water Sunday.
Credit: 9NEWS
Author: Darren Whitehead
Published May 23, 2023
GARFIELD COUNTY, Colo. — A Vail man died while rafting on the Colorado River on Sunday afternoon. The Garfield County Coroner's Office identified the man as 34-year-old Nicholas Courtens. The Garfield County Sheriff's Office (GCSO) said Courtens and four others were rafting in two rafts. Courtens and another member of his rafting party fell into the water while the group was trying to navigate a rapid and an eddy, the Sheriff's Office said.
Courtens was initially unable to be pulled from the water by his rafting partners after he surfaced from the rapid and eddy, the coroner's office said. The other members of the rafting party eventually were able to pull Courtens and the other person from the water and brought them back to shore, the Sheriff's Office said. The rafting party and two bystanders began CPR on Courtens and the other person, GCSO said. The other person responded to the CPR efforts, but Courtens did not. Courtens was wearing a personal floatation device and a helmet, officials said.
The drowning happened between the Shoshone power plant and Grizzly Creek, the Sheriff's Office said. Garfield County officials are warning people that the Colorado, Roaring Fork and Crystal rivers are starting to reach peak water flows. “Water levels are predicted to come up even more in the next couple weeks and stay at a high level for over a month," said Garfield County Emergency Manager Chris Bornholdt. "River safety should be our biggest concern right now. Navigating the river is tricky under normal conditions and when you add 3-4 times the amount of water and speed, things can happen really fast.”
