From Ariel Gobble via FB - There was a death in Westwater Canyon on July 3rd. The water level was 14,000 cfss, which is high. A 65 year old man out of grand Mesa was paddling a16' raft in a 5 boat trip. He was wearing a PFD and a helmet. In Funnel Rapid he was thrown out of his boat, then a second wave flipped his raft and his two passengers were swimming, too. He got to a rock on river right above Skull Rapid where none of us could get to him.
Athough I did not witness it, I heard that he jumped into the river and was caught in the powerful "room of doom" eddy there. He spent a long time underwater before he flushed out and washed downstream. by the time I saw him, he was floating facedown. He was immediately recovered, and CPR was performed for approximately two hours without success. After it became clear that the search and rescue bird was unavailable, his friends decided to stop.
From Anthony Mancuso: This was a private trip that is commonly agreed to be very adequately experienced for Westwater. Funnel Falls (III+) has been the initial catalyst for 3 fatalities since 2010. At flows from 13k to 17k, Big Hummer rapid (III) flows into Funnel Falls (III+) with virtually no pause in wild water. The top of Funnel at those flows begins with back-to-back massive “Colorado River” lateral waves on the right hand side. The prior rapid “Hummer” sets you up in the worst possible angle to “t-up” the following two laterals. The guide managers and rangers suspect that that’s the #1 way Westwater incidents like this unfold.
