Rafter survives capsizing

CODY (WNE) — A rafting accident in the Shoshone Canyon on Sunday left one of the three passengers stranded.

The person was subsequently rescued, according to the Park County Sheriff’s Office.

Dispatch received a 911 call from a caller who had been rafting on the Shoshone River downstream of Hayden Arch Bridge. The party of three had purchased a raft from a local store that afternoon and decided to float the section of whitewater below the bridge, which is currently flowing at 4,500 cubic feet per second (cfs) and not safely runnable on a raft.

At some point during the ensuing float, the raft capsized in the rapids. Two of the subjects were able to get to the shore on the south side of the river while the third went missing. Rescuers learned the third subject had gone through the rapid named “Iron Curtain” and was able to swim to a small cave on the north side of the river.

Search and Rescue, along with sheriff’s deputies and Cody Regional Health EMS personnel were dispatched to the scene. SAR members gained access to the male subject via the road on the north side of the canyon and immediately deployed two swift-water rescue members to contact him. They were able to assist with getting him into a personal flotation device and a harness. Once the subject was safely secured to a rope system, SAR rope team members raised him approximately 150 feet to the road where he was turned over to EMS staff.

The man was suffering from hypothermia. He was assessed by EMS and subsequently refused transport to the hospital for further evaluation.

This story was published on June 18, 2024.