LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — A man died after a raft overturned in the Poudre River Tuesday afternoon, the Larimer County Sheriff's Office said.
Around 3 p.m., the county's dispatch center received a report that a private raft overturned in the river just east of Mishawaka and that one of the rafters was unaccounted for.
Dispatch was also informed by the International Emergency Response Coordination Center that it received an SOS activation from a supported device in the area.
A man was pulled from the water and a Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) officer, three deputies and a witness began performing life-saving measures, the sheriff's office said.
CPR was performed, even as the man was taken by CPW vehicle to Hewlett Gulch, where he was then taken by helicopter to the hospital and pronounced dead.
According to accounts, the rafters were experienced and had proper equipment including the SOS device, the sheriff's office said.
Rafters are encouraged to take some precautions to help emergency responders.
Rafters should ensure they have the proper gear, including lifejackets that fit. They should also permanently write or engrave their name and phone number into all items including kayaks, paddles, inner tubes, and life jackets.
Anyone who loses gear and is unable to safely retrieve it can call the non-emergency number for the sheriff's office: 970-416-1985.
"Doing so will help emergency response personnel when we receive calls from concerned citizens regarding items seen floating on the rivers," the sheriff's office said. "If responders can call the phone number found on the gear and determine no one is missing or hurt, it will prevent a much larger response and search effort which often involves sending emergency response vehicles up the canyon and rescuers into the water, both of which can be very dangerous."
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