CHAFFEE COUNTY, Colo. — Two people were rescued Friday from the roof of a pickup truck after crashing into the Arkansas River in Fremont County.
The crash happened off of Highway 50 in Bighorn Sheep Canyon east of Salida. The people inside the truck climbed to the roof of the truck and waited as rescuers from Fremont and Chaffee counties as well as Colorado Parks & Wildlife devised a plan on how to safely get them back on shore.
Members from CPW's Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area responded to the crash scene and dropped a boat into the frigid river, according to CPW. Three rescuers paddled the boat to the rear of the truck, picked up the people from the truck and then safely paddled back to the river's edge.
The people in the boat then had to scramble up the steep, snow-packed embankment, CPW said. Awaiting EMS crews checked out the people from the truck and determined they suffered minor injuries.
Two people rescued from Arkansas River after truck crash
Tom Waters, park manager of CPW's Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, said the rescue took around 20 minutes from the time they got the call to get a boat in the water, and get the people back to the shore.
Crews were working to get the truck out of the river late Friday afternoon, CPW said.
The area around Salida picked up around 8 inches of snow and the temps hovered in the mid-30s on Friday, according to weather data from the National Weather Service in Pueblo.
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