Maisie Ramsay, Chaffee County Times reporter, July 24, 2014 | 0 comments
Buena Vista – A 57-year-old Texas woman died Thursday afternoon in a rafting accident near the Pine Creek Rapid, the seventh boating-related fatality this year on the upper Arkansas River. The victim, Dallas resident Mary Johnson, was among members of a rafting trip run by Vail-based Timberline Tours. According to a report from Chaffee County Undersheriff John Spezze, the raft entered the Pine Creek Rapid at about noon, and its guide fell from the boat. The raft continued downstream a short distance and became lodged in a large circulating hydraulic. The boat spun and threw several rafters into the river. All were able to swim to shore except Johnson, who was swept downstream before being pulled to shore by a safety kayaker who happened to be in the area. Emergency CPR was administered immediately, Spezze said. Chaffee County Emergency Medical Services continued CPR after arriving at the scene, but attempts to revive Johnson were unsuccessful. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Pine Creek is a Class V rapid 13 miles north of Buena Vista. The Arkansas River was running at 853 cubic feet per second at the time of the accident. Chaffee County Fire Protection District, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Chaffee County Search and Rescue North, Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office, Chaffee County EMS and the Chaffee County coroner responded to the incident.
