From Castiglia: It is in Gore Canyon. I ran it on Saturday and the Pyrite rapid is below the more dangerous Gore rapids. Pyrite is a 10+ foot drop with several large pour over boulders in the center. Leading up to it is a Class IV move requiring you to get very far left or taking the "race line" on the right. Certainly it's the case that falling in above the rapid could be very dangerous. Falling in at the bottom would just put you in a large pool/eddy area where people gather to watch others drop in, it seems to me. This is a terrible thing to happen.
The life flightwas the firstr helicopter landing in Gore Canyon.
Summit Daily News:
On Tuesday, Aug. 29, a 38-year old man died while rafting the Colorado River in Gore Canyon near Kremmling when he fell overboard for an unknown amount of time. First responders from Grand County arrived on the scene in an attempt to save his life, but he was pronounced dead after all lifesaving techniques were exhausted. The Grand County Coroner’s Office released his name Friday morning. The victim was Benjamin Sheehan, 38, and he was a resident of Grand County.
Grand County Sheriff's Office
On August 28, 2023 at approximately 2:27 p.m. Grand County Dispatch received a report of a male in his thirties found not conscious and not breathing in the Colorado River at Pyrite Rapids in the Gore Canyon, outside of the Town of Kremmling in unincorporated Grand County.
The Grand County Sheriff’s Office, Grand County Search and Rescue, Grand County Emergency Medical Services, and Flight For Life responded to the scene where an unresponsive 38-year-old male had been pulled out from the water after falling from his raft. Due to the extremely challenging and mountainous terrain, the Union Pacific Railroad provided much appreciated assistance accessing the site via a hi-rail truck from the Kremmling railroad yard.
The initial investigation revealed that a group of rafters had put in at the Confluence of the Blue River and the Colorado River. It was reported from other group members that a short time into the float, the 38-year-old male who was an experienced rafter, fell overboard and was in the water for an unknown amount of time before other members of his group were able to locate him. It was determined by Grand County Emergency Medical Services and the Flight For Life crew that all lifesaving interventions had been exhausted and the man was determined deceased on scene. The male was wearing a helmet and a personal flotation device.
The Coroner’s Office has made next of kin notifications. The decedent’s identity and cause and manner of death will be released by the Coroner when appropriate.
Grand County Search and Rescue
1 dead in rafting accident in Colorado River at Pyrite Rapids
By CBSColorado.com Staff
August 29, 2023
One person died while rafting on the Colorado River at Pyrite Rapids in Gore Canyon on Monday afternoon. That's outside the town of Kremmling in unincorporated Grand County. First responders, including the Grand County Sheriff's Office, Grand County Search and Rescue, Grand County Medical Services and Flight for Lift responded to the scene about 2:27 p.m. Monday where they found a male in his 30s not conscious and not breathing in the river.
The 38-year-old male had been pulled from the water after falling out of his raft. According to the Grand County Sheriff's Office, the Union Pacific Railroad provided assistance accessing the site via a hi-rail truck from the Kremmling railroad yard.
According to the initial investigation, a group of rafters had put in at the Confluence of the Blue River and the Colorado River. Some members of the group told investigators that a short time into the float, the 38-year-old male, who was an experienced rafter, fell overboard and was in the water for an unknown amount of time before other members of his group could locate him.
Unfortunately, emergency medical services and the Flight for Life crew determined that all lifesaving interactions had been exhausted and he was declared deceased on scene. He was wearing a helmet and personal floatation device.
