Another sad one.
TOKETEE — A rafting accident on the North Umpqua River near Dry Creek claimed the life of Nichole Pomeroy, 16, of Bend on Sunday afternoon.
A raft carrying seven people capsized in the river near Copeland Creek near milepost 52 on Highway 138 East.
Douglas County sheriff's deputies, Douglas County Fire District No. 2 and search and rescue crews were on scene well into the evening Sunday, trying to retrieve her body.
Deputy Brian Melvin, incident commander, said the victim got stuck in a root system at the butt of a jammed log in turbulent waters. The other rafters who were with her escaped unscathed.
"These were not experienced rafters," Melvin said.
All the rafters were wearing life jackets, but Pomeroy's apparently came off when she went under the water, according to the sheriff's office.
Fellow rafters reported the victim had been underwater for about 10 minutes before they called 911 at 2:40 p.m. Search and rescue crews arrived on scene at 3:30 p.m., at which time the victim was determined deceased and the surviving rafters interviewed.
Following unsuccessful attempts at reaching the body, Weekly Bros. of Idleyld Park was called in to assist. Todd Weekly used a chain saw to cut through an underwater tree trunk in an attempt to free the body. Workers planned to return to the scene today to continue efforts to recover the body.
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