SALIDA – Authorities say a man died after the raft he was in flipped on the Arkansas River in southern Colorado.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials say five people were thrown from the privately owned raft in a whitewater section of the river below Salida on Friday afternoon. Kayakers floating near the raft rescued four of the people, but the fifth was carried downstream.
The man, whose name has not been released, was seen floating face-down and was pulled from the water. Rangers with the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area performed CPR, but the man died at the scene.
Earlier Friday, a 26-year-old man who was involved in a tubing accident on the Poudre River in northern Colorado on Thursday died. He was identified as Matthew Spates of Fort Collins.
In western Colorado, six people were thrown from their raft after it overturned in the Roaring Fork River on Thursday. The Glenwood Springs Post Independent reported two were able to swim to shore nearby. A helicopter and ground crews searched for the others for about an hour before they were found a distance downstream.
Glenwood Springs Fire Chief Gary Tillotson said none of the rafters was injured and all were wearing life jackets.
