As the Provo River races to drain the spring melt, Wasatch County Search and Rescue has had a busy couple of weeks.
Capt. Kam Kohler said his team has been called to the river for rescues five times in the past 10-14 days. In one of those incidents, a kayaker capsized and possibly broke his leg. Later that day, a family of seven tried to tube down the river, and all seven of them — including a 4-year-old and 1-year-old — were overturned. Fortunately, they were all wearing life jackets and made it safely out of the dangerous situation, but things could have ended much worse.
About two weeks ago, a different situation involving the dangerous river had a much more devastating ending when a 12-year-old boy fell into the water near Bridal Veil Falls, where his family was hiking. His body was pulled up about four miles from where he entered.
Kohler explained that because nearby reservoirs are filled to capacity, they’re feeding into the river much more than usual.
“The water is extremely high. Most of the time, most of the summer, the waters in the Provo are pretty mild and safe,” Kohler said. “Right now, the water is just screaming.”
He said that unless someone is an expert, it’s not worth risking it under current conditions, and people should stay away from the water.
“Without the proper experience, you’re just not going to be able to read what the river is doing,” Kohler said. “Don’t go risk your life. … Just wait a few weeks, and when the river starts dropping, then go have fun on the river.”
Beyond the obvious dangers someone risks in a fast-moving, high-water river, Kohler said there are other factors people might not even consider until they face a very risky situation.
“The high water creates a lot of problems along the shoreline because the water comes up into the growth on the bank,” he said. “You have a bunch of willows on the side of the river and there’s no escaping. … You can’t just get to the bank and walk out.”
He said those same branches will cling to tubes, kayaks and people, creating another force that may knock people into the precarious current.
“It’s just a terrible time to be around the river because even if you have a slip and fall and go into the water, you’re still in trouble,” Kohler said. “My recommendation is during high water, just avoid the river at all costs. Just stay away. Go do something else. Come back in July when the water’s down and much safer, and then the Provo River’s a lot of fun.”
For those who ignore his pleas and aren’t river experts, he described their likely experience as “unforgiving.”
Even when the waters are more welcoming and recreation-friendly, Kohler said there are still things people should do to make sure their time in the river is happy and not harrowing.
First, he recommended people who don’t know how to tell when the river is safe to find someone who does to teach them.
“We have a lot of people that just go down, ‘Oh, it’s hot, I want to hop on the river,'” Kohler said. “They’re hopping on with small kids and they just don’t understand what they’re getting themselves into. So I think it starts with finding somebody. If you don’t know the river, you’ve got to find somebody who does and talk to them.”
If people can’t tell a safe flow from a dangerous one, Kohler said they probably don’t have a place on the river.
“You put yourself in harm’s way without even realizing it,” he said.
Second, Kohler said people hop into the river without a life jacket.
“We hit middle of July, and the river’s dropped a long ways,” he said. “People jump in the river all the time without the proper precautions like a life-preserver.”
He said they’re required in rivers just like they are in lakes, and people are foolish to think they don’t need one.
“Even search and rescue guys don’t go in the river without a life jacket,” he said.
