See also http://www.enterprisenewspapers.com/archive/2003/6/13/200361212245615.cfm.
James W. Nelson, 35, was paddling an inflatable kayak on the North Fork Skykomish River in Washington on May 30, 2003. After he flipped, his friend saw him holding onto his boat. When he went missing, the friend contact authorities, who found Nelson trapped under some logs. They returned and performed a body recovery the following day. Nelson was wearing a wetsuit and PFD, but no helmet.
http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/396190
Published on HeraldNet.com: 6/1/03
Mukilteo kayaker dies in the Skykomish
INDEX -- A 35-year-old Mukilteo man died over the weekend while kayaking along the North Fork of the Skykomish River off the Index-Galena Road north of Index. Snohomish County Sheriff's Search and Rescue crews recovered the man's body Saturday. He was the second man in less than a week recovered from the Skykomish, and sheriff's officials are warning people to stay out of the river. "It should be noted that's a very dangerous portion of the river where the rapids are extremely fast and rough. We've had a lot of accidents out there over the past few years," sheriff's spokeswoman Jan Jorgensen said. "Everybody should be aware of the dangers and take every precaution, but the best way is to stay out of that river."
The kayaker went into the river Friday with a friend. At 2:45 p.m. the friend saw the man hanging onto his kayak. Then the friend lost track of the man. The friend searched the area for a while, then reported the man missing. The search and rescue helicopter began a search and found the man's body trapped under some logs. The helicopter landed on a nearby gravel bar in the middle of the river. It was getting dark, and with the dangerous water surrounding them, the rescue team decided to call off the recovery Friday night. They secured the victim and returned to the scene Saturday morning to recover the body, Jorgensen said. The man was wearing a wet suit and a personal flotation device but no helmet. His name was being withheld pending notification of his family. An autopsy will be performed Monday to determine the cause of death.
"These people were not experienced in the water and should not have been in there," Jorgensen said. "It's not a good time to be in the river." On May 26, a man's body was found floating down the Skykomish River near Startup after a passerby reported seeing it in the water near the U.S. 2 bridge east of Gold Bar. The body apparently had been in the water for a while. That man has yet to be identified and his cause of death is still unknown. The man was described as white, 50 or older, 5 feet 6 inches tall, 170 pounds and balding with gray and white hair. Anyone with information about the man is asked to call the sheriff's office at 425-388-3393.http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/396190
Published on HeraldNet.com: 6/1/03
Mukilteo kayaker dies in the Skykomish
INDEX -- A 35-year-old Mukilteo man died over the weekend while kayaking along the North Fork of the Skykomish River off the Index-Galena Road north of Index.
Snohomish County Sheriff's Search and Rescue crews recovered the man's body Saturday. He was the second man in less than a week recovered from the Skykomish, and sheriff's officials are warning people to stay out of the river.
"It should be noted that's a very dangerous portion of the river where the rapids are extremely fast and rough. We've had a lot of accidents out there over the past few years," sheriff's spokeswoman Jan Jorgensen said. "Everybody should be aware of the dangers and take every precaution, but the best way is to stay out of that river."
The kayaker went into the river Friday with a friend. At 2:45 p.m. the friend saw the man hanging onto his kayak. Then the friend lost track of the man. The friend searched the area for a while, then reported the man missing.
The search and rescue helicopter began a search and found the man's body trapped under some logs. The helicopter landed on a nearby gravel bar in the middle of the river. It was getting dark, and with the dangerous water surrounding them, the rescue team decided to call off the recovery Friday night. They secured the victim and returned to the scene Saturday morning to recover the body, Jorgensen said.
The man was wearing a wet suit and a personal flotation device but no helmet. His name was being withheld pending notification of his family. An autopsy will be performed Monday to determine the cause of death.
"These people were not experienced in the water and should not have been in there," Jorgensen said. "It's not a good time to be in the river."
On May 26, a man's body was found floating down the Skykomish River near Startup after a passerby reported seeing it in the water near the U.S. 2 bridge east of Gold Bar. The body apparently had been in the water for a while.
That man has yet to be identified and his cause of death is still unknown. The man was described as white, 50 or older, 5 feet 6 inches tall, 170 pounds and balding with gray and white hair.
Anyone with information about the man is asked to call the sheriff's office at 425-388-3393.http://boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk/396190
