Two drowned in Zion Narrows

[Iceaxe]

Two men aboard raft made of logs killed in Zion
The Salt Lake Tribune
Updated: 04/26/2010 04:59:29 PM MDT

Two men from Nevada have died in Zion National Park after trying to navigate the Virgin River on a makeshift raft.

The raft was made of logs, said park spokesman Ron Terry, and the two men, both in their 20s, put into the river without seeking a permit from park rangers. The men were trying to navigate the river through the stretch known as The Narrows.

Terry said the Virgin River was flowing at least 200 cubic feet per second through The Narrows -- fast enough that someone could not stand up in the water. Neither man appears to have been wearing a flotation device, Terry said.

Terry said the men were from the Las Vegas area, but their names were not disclosed Monday afternoon.

The men were reported overdue on Sunday morning and a search began later that day.

The first body was located in the north fork of the Virgin River, near the gateway to The Narrows, around 9 a.m., according to a news release from the National Park Service. A few hours later, the second body was discovered near the Big Bend shuttle stop, about two miles downstream.

Terry said anyone wanting a permit to travel that stretch of the Virgin River must be aboard a craft capable of navigating white water. Typically, that's a kayak, Terry said.

Terry said a medical examiner will determine what killed the men.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14961712

[Iceaxe]

And as usual.... The SL Trib comment section is all laughs and giggles......

"If you have a permit you cannot drown, break your leg, or have any health problems."

"Yes people, stupidity kills...Terry said a medical examiner will determine what killed the men..My guess, STUPIDITY..."

"Nature delights in punishing stupid people."

"I couldn't help but hear " sit right back and hear a tell" the whole time I was reading this article."

"If I pray for the families of the deceased my prayer will be this: Dear God -- please help everybody in that family to act with a whole lot more intelligence than the deceased displayed. Amen"

"I wonder where they got the logs, cut down a few trees?"

More here:
http://www.tribtowns.com/comments/read_comments.asp?ref=14961712&sec=News

[trackrunner]

also talked about in this thread. just incase you couldn't guess why Bo was scheduled to take a heli ride yesterday.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthread.php?39025-East-Side-Zion-and-Canyons

[Iceaxe]

I would have thought the Forum hall monitor would have started a new thread.... :lol8:

I've been busy the past couple of weeks and haven't been able to read most the threads.... or I would have put on my moderator hat and split that thread.... sorry about that ya'll....

[trackrunner]

confirmed and victums have been identified.

no life jacket, no wetsuit or drysuit, raft made out of logs built at Deep Creek confluence. Plan was to float to Hurricane.

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_14969478?source=rss
http://www.thespectrum.com/article/20100427/NEWS05/100427031/Zion-rafting-victims-identified
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700027606/Two-bodies-pulled-from-Narrows-in-Zion-National-Park.html

[Iceaxe]

It would be interesting to know what happened.... while 200 CFS might be difficult I don't see it as deadly. You can get out of the water and onto dry land about 95% of the watercourse.

[ratagonia]

It would be interesting to know what happened.... while 200 CFS might be difficult I don't see it as deadly. You can get out of the water and onto dry land about 95% of the watercourse.

Uh, yeah.... kinda sorta...

Hypothermia. It might be easier and safer to hike down the Narrows (mostly) at that water level, with the occasional float. It must have taken them several hours to lash together a raft. They probably had overnight gear. Load two people onto a raft and control with what, poles? It would constantly get hung up on rocks and trees, tip, spin, get taken under ledges. Not pretty. Obviously, they were not too saavy, or they would have realized the problem before they got past Big Springs and gone to shore and camped for a few days, until the rangers came and got them. Maybe they were already dead by then. Or too hypothermic to make even the most-obvious of decisions.

Nuff speculation? There's not much to go on, other than what they tried to do, which is enough.

Tom

[trackrunner]

They probably had overnight gear.

In one of the articles I read it stated they were trying to raft from Deep Creek to Hurricane on Saturday. Gave the impression it was all in one day.

But news articles and specualation can be wrong. Perhaps it wasn't a one day shot.

[Alex]

I've done that before in a walmart inflatable boat. By the time we got to the bottom of Narrows, we had only one tube left (from 4 tubes in the boat). Everything got shredded and destroyed. This was summer, but we still got cold without wetsuits. I doubt these guys lasted very long before they ran into trouble and couldn't recover from it.

[Iceaxe]

I understand the cold and hypothermia..... I guess the part I don't understand is why not just wade over the the beach and wait for rescue once you notice you bit off more then you can chew???

[Reedus]

I understand the cold and hypothermia..... I guess the part I don't understand is why not just wade over the the beach and wait for rescue once you notice you bit off more then you can chew???
Pride. Probably didn't realize the deep crap they were in and didn't want to face a fine from the Rangers

[nonot]

So if the permit system causes as many deaths as it prevents, perhaps its time to give the whole thing a rethink. :popcorn:

[ratagonia]

So if the permit system causes as many deaths as it prevents, perhaps its time to give the whole thing a rethink. :popcorn:

As a well-known opponent of the permit system, I must say I am mightly impressed by the *logical* leap here. Me, I woulda pinned it on George W. Bush (ya know, making it safe for lots of people to do stupid thing), but HEY, that's jes' me.

Tom :moses:

[Bo_Beck]

It intrigues me to read these threads sometimes?! It starts with a "headline" article being posted by a local newspaper. We all believe every word that is written, and then we make our own speculation. Pretty soon a tragic occurrence is analyzed to the point that the the headline is forgotten, and we've come up with our own solution to change the world for the better? Oh yeah....what was this thread about?

14 days til LAUNCH. S.J. River Yee-Haw!

[Alex]

It intrigues me to read these threads sometimes?! It starts with a "headline" article being posted by a local newspaper. We all believe every word that is written, and then we make our own speculation. Pretty soon a tragic occurrence is analyzed to the point that the the headline is forgotten, and we've come up with our own solution to change the world for the better? Oh yeah....what was this thread about?

14 days til LAUNCH. S.J. River Yee-Haw!

Sweet! SJ will be peaking then! I am launching on Yampa in a week, woohoo

[Iceaxe]

It starts with a "headline" article being posted by a local newspaper. We all believe every word that is written, and then we make our own speculation. Pretty soon a tragic occurrence is analyzed to the point that the the headline is forgotten, and we've come up with our own solution to change the world for the better?

It's a snow day.... what else are we supposed to do???

[Iceaxe]

FWIW: Here is the NPS Morning report dated Friday, April 30, 2010.
http://home.nps.gov/applications/morningreport/

Zion National Park (UT)
Two Rafters Drown In Virgin River

On Sunday, April 25th, rangers received a report of an overdue party from a float trip down though the Virgin River Narrows. Investigation revealed that two 23-year-old men from Las Vegas had hiked into the Narrows with the intent of constructing a log raft and floating approximately 50 miles through the Narrows to Hurricane, Utah. The men were not equipped with wetsuits or PFDs, did not have whitewater rafting experience, and had limited camping experience, little food and no overnight gear. They told their father that they intended to record their entire trip on video camera as an entry into the “Man vs. Wild” competition. The SAR operation concluded on April 26th when both bodies and a small amount of personal gear were recovered from the river. [Submitted by Cindy Purcell, Chief Ranger]

[Scott Card]

Wow, even more sad and frustrating. I hope the dad told them they were idiots if they went so he can at least have a little peace.

[Iceaxe]

Find the video camera and you might have some interesting footage. If it's one of the newer camera's with a memory card it should still be readable.

[goofball]

They told their father that they intended to record their entire trip on video camera as an entry into the “Man vs. Wild” competition.

i knew it was only a matter of time before that f---ing idiot influenced somebody to death. from climbing into a slot canyon for water (then how do you get out ?), to jumping into a mountain river to "float it to safety" (yeah, hypothermia and rocks to bash your brains in are negligible concerns), that idiots irresponsible panning of "entertainment" as education for outdoors survival was bound to have a bad influence. the guy is a f---ing idiot and i hope some responsibility for this goes his way. f---ing idiot. :angryfire:





bear grylls is a f---ing idiot.

[Reedus]

Darwinism in action if you ask me... if your stupid enough to take Bear Grylls at face value, then there is no hope for you.

[ratagonia]

i knew it was only a matter of time before that f---ing idiot influenced somebody to death. from climbing into a slot canyon for water (then how do you get out ?), to jumping into a mountain river to "float it to safety" (yeah, hypothermia and rocks to bash your brains in are negligible concerns), that idiots irresponsible panning of "entertainment" as education for outdoors survival was bound to have a bad influence. the guy is a f---ing idiot and i hope some responsibility for this goes his way. f---ing idiot. :angryfire:



bear grylls is a f---ing idiot.

C'mon man. Tell us how you really feel! :moses:

[trackrunner]

C'mon man. Tell us how you really feel! :moses:

:lol8::five:

[Don]

i knew it was only a matter of time before that f---ing idiot influenced somebody to death. from climbing into a slot canyon for water (then how do you get out ?), to jumping into a mountain river to "float it to safety" (yeah, hypothermia and rocks to bash your brains in are negligible concerns), that idiots irresponsible panning of "entertainment" as education for outdoors survival was bound to have a bad influence. the guy is a f---ing idiot and i hope some responsibility for this goes his way. f---ing idiot. :angryfire:
bear grylls is a f---ing idiot.

Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking is on Discovery right now and they just played a commercial for a new Bear Grylls show; Worst Case Scenario. Looks like he's now teaching viewers how to escape a car sinking in water and evade angry dogs and survive a knife fight. You know; useful stuff.
Too bad, they should limit Grylls and give Hawking another show. Hawking's advice for a knife fight would certainly be more useful.

[trackrunner]

Hawking's advice for a knife fight would certainly be more useful.

:roflol::lol8::hahaha::bwahaha: :five:

[Scott P]

Looks like the content has been closed:

http://www.yourdiscovery.com/au/man-vs-wild-competition/

I am assuming the drownings are the reason why?

[Felicia]

Can anyone one smell "lawsuit"??? :nono:

[caverdan]

..