# Death on Westwater yesterday



## mania (Oct 21, 2003)

thats a sad story. thanks for the post. my condolences as well.

most drownings nowadays are flush drownings - much more so than foot entrapments for example. if swimming agressively to shore were emphasised as much or more than keeping your feet up this might make a difference. its time we preach this message far and wide. not trying to cast blame here but i see it way too often. tell your peeps to SWIM!


----------



## johnny portage (Apr 17, 2005)

condolences...

I don't know what would have made the differece here. Having taken my own little swim last year, I have to second mania -- tell your peeps to swim!

Again, it's tough, and I don't want to judge.


----------



## akblair (Apr 27, 2004)

My condolences to her family and friends. Does anyone have any more information on this? I am just concerned as I run this stretch alot. I know the highest I have run is 10,000 and that was enough to scare me. I am guessing at 12,000 it would be pretty hard to get out if you were swimming.


----------



## WAVER (Jul 21, 2005)

BLM in Moab confirmed a Westwater drowning Sunday, Grand County Sheriff's office released a press release Monday, mainstream media has yet to pick up on it as far as I know (been tracking it all week). Condolences to all involved.


----------



## Remoteproductions (Oct 31, 2005)

*Face Down???*

Anybody know the PFD situation? Was it on correctly/size?


----------



## kwikwater (Jun 15, 2006)

Hi all!!
I'm Kelvin White and it was my boat that flipped Sunday in WW. 

First Thank You to Caspian for sharing the story. He was very accurate and had a good source for his information. I will share my story as I posted in on another bulletin board, below. 

In answer to a question here, yes Bob had driven rafts for 5-6 years, but had been around 20 years ago. He had been to WW just once, 26 years back. I've been boating for 29 years. 

I can't agree any more with the response I've seen on this forum. In big water, swim for your life to the shore. If there's a rope, great. I fear we experienced people think of too many scenerios for the newbie to absorb when faced with swimming in Class IV big water. 

I also agree with Caspian that enough can be said for the work of the BLM intern. I've seen him in a couple of situations now. He's a man ahead of his years and experience!!

Here's the article I'd written up yesterday before finding this forum and Caspian's post. I 've shared more on the Yahoo Groups Utahrafters site.
* * ** *
I invited an old friend and his wife to join me to float Westwater Sunday. Bob & Kathy. Bob is an old friend and rafting buddy from the era 20+ years ago. We were joined by another boat with a solo boatman. I let Bob row from the put-in until the real rapids  Funnel down. Well, just 75 yards from where we were to switch drivers, we flipped. 

Ive never been real sure just where Staircase and Big Hummer are, but am told the spot is at the foot of Staircase where the river doglegs left. Then theres the smooth stretch for 150 yds. into the corner above Funnel. Theres a strong eddy on river right that manifests itself in various forms as it joins back to the main current. At different water levels there might be a surfing wave there, the rock that forms a hole at higher water exposes itself by mid summer. Ive had a tube sucked down, hard, there before. I remember looking at it thinking it was a real strong tidy bowl. Bob tells me I said square up just before we hit it. It caught the front corner of my Hyside 16 SB and we went over quick. My first reaction was to see if we could swim the boat to the right, into the eddy. That wasnt going to work. Then I thought maybe if I spooled out the throw rope, I could swim to calmer water and swing in the boat. We all directed our effort that way. I was fighting my jacket slipping up in my face, putting too much effort into keeping it down, when the initial waves above Funnel started coming in rapid succession. Im not sure when I let go of the throw rope or where I was from the boat when I knew I had to get to shore. I also had an advantage over my guests as I knew how close I had to be getting to Funnel. The other boat with us, a small cat 13-14, with just the boatman tried to pick me up, but I wasnt ready to risk not getting on his boat and knew I would swim Funnel. I told him to go on. 

Bob & Kathy stayed with the boat thinking that was the better option. I wonder if they could hold on through Funnel. Bob said they stayed close together for what sounds like near, but above Skull. They floated apart and back together once. The second time they came back together, her speech was garbled. Im thinking this was just below Skull. Bob evidently got ahead of her somewhere below Skull and got out between Sock and Last Chance. Kathy floated by him there, but she did not respond to his shouts. Our other boat picked him up there, above Last Chance. They found Kathy, probably 20 minutes later at the upper end of the bar that has Bald Eagle at the lower end and tried CPR for 45 minutes with no response. 

When word got back up to the put in, BLM personnel came and fetched me. The take out was full of emergency personnel. Im not sure when Ive felt as surrounded by patient, compassionate, caring people. From the Grand County sheriff, ambulance, the volunteer grief counselors and definitely the BLM guys. They made the best of a rotten situation. 

Thats the story. Ill start another thread with some other thoughts. Bob nor myself are taking any couldve, wouldve, shouldves. Were not taking any finger pointing. I am committed to refreshing the things Ive learned over all my years on the river, so we dont forget them. Please look at how you plan and organize your trips, particularly the ones that might become more routine over the years. It can happen when and where you least expect it.


----------



## kwikwater (Jun 15, 2006)

*Re: Face Down???*



Remoteproductions said:


> Anybody know the PFD situation? Was it on correctly/size?


From talking to the victim's husband, she was floating pretty much vertically in the water with her head "nodding" forward, but not under water. We had "fitted" a America's Cup Type V, but as we know, once they're wet, they can be more slippery than we hope. 
KW


----------



## andy (Oct 13, 2003)

What are the water temps in westwater this time of year? Below 50 degrees?

I've only been there in the late summer...


----------



## kwikwater (Jun 15, 2006)

andy said:


> What are the water temps in westwater this time of year? Below 50 degrees?
> 
> I've only been there in the late summer...



http://waterdata.usgs.gov/co/nwis/uv?09163500


----------



## CORiverRat (May 17, 2005)

*13K is a tough level for the inexperienced*

Several years ago we were involved in a very similar situation at almost exactly the same water level in Westwater. Luckily ours had a better outcome, not because of anything the victims did but simply because of dumb luck. We had been sitting at the bottom of Funnel after one of our team swam out of Staircase when first a duckie, with an older man and young child flipped in Funnel and then immediately following that a raft with a 30 something father and two even younger children flipped in the same place. We had three children, two of whom were wearing adult life jackets and two adults in the water. None wore any cold water gear (and it was really cold because of snowmelt) and the only thing that saved them was some quick throw rope work, a bit or rock climbing by one member of our crew to get to a stranded six year old and some quick work by two of us jumping in out boats (one of whom had never run Westwater before but agreed to follow my line (and would have wandered into the hole in Surprise if he hadn't)) and chasing the 65 year old all the way to Skull where he luckily washed into the eddy just above the drop on river left. The duckie made it all the way through Last Chance and the raft made it to just above the Cisco take out.

So word of warning to all, at 13K the inexperienced and unprepared are truly taking their lives in their hands in Westwater. Self rescue is difficult and boats (and people) will flush through several rapids if not rescued quickly. Luckily for this group a rafting party from Moab had stopped at Skull and another party came down that had room for the three children and one adult who were stranded with our team at Funnel. This allowed us to get them off the river, and also warmed up because between all of us we had enough extra clothing to dress everyone in proper cold weather gear. Also, at Funnel Falls in the canyon it takes some 5.6 rock climbing just to climb out so without boats, cold and shivering in cotten clothes these people even had they self rescued would have been stranded.

Roger


----------



## oopsyhuck (Jun 21, 2006)

johnny portage said:


> condolences...
> 
> I don't know what would have made the differece here. Having taken my own little swim last year, I have to second mania -- tell your peeps to swim!
> 
> Again, it's tough, and I don't want to judge.



We are between twins!!!


----------

