MORGAN COUNTY, Colo. -- The search is on for a missing 35-year-old man who was kayaking with a friend on the South Platte River in between Fort Morgan and Brush. Just after noon on Friday a call came into 911 from the man’s friend. He said that his friend went over a low head diversion dam, the kayak popped out of the water but his friend has not been seen since. “He was caught in the boil line (of the dam) trying to make his way to the north shore and his friend lost sight of him and we haven’t seen him since,” Morgan County Undersheriff Dave Martin said.
At least five different agencies scoured the area where he was last seen near the dam. The Sheriff’s Office said the very strong undercurrent makes for a difficult area to search. “We have to do it carefully and we can’t really put anybody down in the water and risk somebody else’s life so we’re doing it with some ropes and we have a boat crew in the water,” Martin said. In the evening the search broadened from the water to the land where they scoured the river bank downstream. As of Friday night, the Sheriff’s Office said it should be considered a search and recovery mission. Crews called the search off for the night when the sun went down.
Missing kayaker's body recovered from South Platte River The victim was wearing a flotation device and a helmet when he drowned, but officials believe he was trapped under the water spilling over a dam.
By Katy Canada - The Denver Post Posted: 05/08/2016
A rescue team has recovered the body of a 23-year-old man who drowned in the South Platte River. The victim's friend notified the Morgan County Sheriff's Department Friday afternoon that he'd disappeared while kayaking. Around 40 officials from the sheriff's department and several other agencies began searching for the man. The victim was wearing a flotation device and a helmet when he drowned, but officials believe he was trapped under the water spilling over a dam. He was last seen at the base of the dam. The victim's kayak was found downstream. His body was discovered around 10:30 a.m. Saturday by Platte Valley and Evans firefighters. They found him in the river between County Roads 25 and 26. The victim's name has not yet been released.
