DINOSAUR, Colorado, June 29, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — The body of a 50-year-old Sandy city man was recovered after a rafting accident during a private permitted trip on the Green River in Dinosaur National Monument.
A statement from the National Park Service says that at about 4 p.m. Thursday, June 27, monument staff were notified that a boat was pinned on a rock in the Colorado rapid named Hells Half Mile. One person from the group was missing and suspected to be pinned under the raft.
The group was eventually able to unpin and secure the boat, but the person, now dislodged, unresponsive, and having lost his lifejacket, drifted downriver.
River Patrol Rangers were informed and initiated travel through the Canyon of Lodore by raft to intercept the group and conduct recovery efforts. Additional support traveled by car using the Echo Park Road.
At 7:45 the next morning, monument staff received information from a commercial rafting company that the victim’s body had been found and secured by guides approximately 10 river miles downstream from the location of the accident, the statement says.
“With the assistance of Adrift guides, monument staff, and the Vernal-based Classic Air Medical helicopter crew, the victim’s body was transported to the Moffat County coroner,” the NPS statement says. “The rafter’s name will be withheld while family members are notified.
“Dinosaur National Monument expresses appreciation for Classic, Adrift, River Runners Transport, Moffat County ACTSS (Advocates, Crisis, Trauma, and Survivor Services) and monument staff who assisted in search and recovery efforts, and offers condolences to the family and river community impacted by this incident.”
