Date of incident: 05/02/2020 at 1 pm-
River name: Lochsa River, ID; Upper Section (White Pine
to Ninemile)
River level: 6.5ft on Lowell Bridge
gauge or 11,400cfs (moderately high flows)
Victim: Unidentified Man, 40
Injury type: Flush drowning, Fatal
Number of people in the
party - 2
Type and number of
watercraft: One,
newer 12-13ft raft with center frame.
Private or commercial trip
Private
Experience: Beginner
Knowledge of river segment
Ran
Lochsa once before at 3ft and Clark Fork near Missoula “a couple” of times. Presence of proper safety
equipment: PFDs,
drysuits, helmets, and footwear all present, but inadequate layering under
drysuits.
Contributing factors: Cold water, high water,
inadequate layering, lack of experience relative to difficulty of river segment
and flow, one boat trip.
Summary: On May 2nd, 2020 a fatal
incident involving an unidentified male of approximately 40 years of age
occurred on the upper section of the Lochsa River in Idaho County, Idaho. The
victim launched with one other male in a 12-13ft raft from White Pine at a
substantial flow of 6.5ft on the Lowell Bridge gauge as a solo boat move. The
victim was riding in the front of the raft being rowed by the other man using a
center mount frame. Both men were wearing PFDs, drysuits, and helmets. A group
of paddlers reported helping reunite the victim (in the raft) and his partner
(on shore) upstream of the accident site following an apparent swim. They noted
the victim appeared exhausted, and offered to help the men exit the river to no
avail before continuing on with their trip.
Sometime before 1pm PT, the raft
capsized in or near Lone Pine Rapid, and the party of two became separated and
the victim was washed downstream through Holly and then Castle Creek Rapid, the
section’s most difficult and consequential set of features. The victim was
extricated by a group of boaters from another downstream party(s). After
transferring the victim onto shore at the Ninemile River Access, first
responders initiated and maintained CPR until EMS arrived approximately an hour later. CPR was unsuccessful.
The following should be
considered as potential contributing factors: A single boat trip on a high-water
continuous run reduces the chances of rescuing a swimmer. The rower had only
run the Lochsa and this section once before at a flow of ~3ft. The difficulty
and consequence of this section is substantially increased at 6.5ft as the
rapids tend to run into one another and eddy lines are well defined and
extremely hard to catch for any swimmer. The victim was only wearing a very
thin “long John like” layer under his drysuit, and although air temps reached
into the 70’s that day, the water temps on the Lochsa hover in the 40’s during
spring runoff, therefore the risks of hypothermia and cold water shock may have
been significant factors.
