rafter death on the ocoee (from boater talk)
Kathryn Streletzky
Forum:BoaterTalk
Date: May 06 2002, 19:23
From: tennpaddler
Here are the facts as I know them:
Saturday I and four other trip leaders were taking a school group (MTSU) down
to the Ocoee for a weekend rafting trip. When we saw the river, we knew that
there was no way we were going to take a group or ourselves down the river (We
have
over 30 years of combined experience guiding the Ocoee). We decided that we
would go over to the Hiwassee. When we were going down hwy 64 around the
Doldrums area we noticed three people frantically running down the road. I
looked out of the van and saw a body floating face up down the river.
Imediately, my boss jumped out of the van to help. He is very trained in
situations like this. The other trip leader and I sped down to the commercial
takeout to alert the rangers. Soon, another one of our trip leaders joined my
boss. They were following the body down the river along the banks of the
river. Soon, a brave man in a kayak paddled out to the floating man and
grabbed him with one arm and paddled back to shore with his blade in the other
hand. He did this through class III water dragging 180+ lbs. with him. Enough
cannot be said about this kayaker ( I dont know his name) who risked his life
for somebody he did not know. My boss and the other trip leader carried the
body from the shore to the street, where one of our trip participants
administered CPR till the ambulance came. The gentleman died from drowning. He
had swam from double suck, which was just one large hole, to the doldrums going
through double trouble and flipper, which was a river wide hydraulic. The
gentleman was a fireman who was in a boat with other fireman. The entire raft
had capsized, but the rest of the people in the boat were brought to safety,
although they were very beaten up.
-Here is my opinion-
Should this gentleman have been on the river? Who am I to judge. People jump
in boats for different reasons. Whether he knew what he was getting himself
into is a whole different story. The Ocoee is treated like an amusement ride,
even though there is a list of stories of death and injuries that were
avoidable associated with the river. Education is key in many situations, but
education is usually pushed aside for ego. This situation is a sad situation
(the gentleman was also wearing a wedding ring), and my condolensces and
prayers go out to the family. I do not wish this upon any person, so therefore
I will continue to educate everybody who participates in our trips (MTSU's
outdoor pursuits) about how to treat nature and its elements with respect and
thought before stepping into something over their head.
Josh
Kathryn Streletzky
Forum:BoaterTalk
Re: any info on the death on the ocoee? (nt) <NT> (drippinwet)
Date: May 06 2002, 13:45
From: drippinwet
OCOEE, Tenn.- A Florida man was killed when a raft tipped over on the Ocoee
River, authorities said.
Edgar W. Mauss, 42, of Port Charles, Fla., died Saturday on the river in
southeastern Tennessee near Chattanooga, said ranger Lance Crawford. Mauss'
body was found about one mile downstream.
Officials said the private raft with six aboard tipped over. Five others were
rescued and not injured, Crawford said.
The area on the river upstream from Ocoee had received several inches of rain
Friday and Saturday. Early Saturday morning, the Tennessee Valley Authority
warned that water levels would rise in the area where Mauss later died.
Alice Potter
was taking friends down. The river was running 6000cfs when they put on and
surged to 14,000 while they were on. The results were tragic.
"Kathryn Streletzky" <kstre...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20020506185809...@mb-fz.aol.com...
Kathryn Streletzky
>was taking friends down. The river was running 6000cfs when they put on and
>surged to 14,000 while they were on. The results were tragic.
Yes. It is likely that there would have been a second death if it were not for
the heroism of Jeremy Perry. Here's his firsthand account from Boater Talk:
Drowning on the Ocoee last Saturday
Forum:BoaterTalk
Date: May 07 2002, 16:32
From: Jeremy23
There was an accident on the Ocoee this past Saturday. I was safety boating
in my kayak for a group of firefighters that had decided to borrow a raft and
try the Ocoee at flood stage. There were four firemen, one of which was a
experienced guide and a regular on the river, and a guide from the outfitters I
work at (five in total). I had showed up that morning prepared to take rafting
trips, but due to the commercial cancelation I decided to go kayaking instead
and play safety boater.
We put on and were doing fine.
They were paddeling in an Avon non self-bailer, I in my Wave Sport Stubby. We
had made it down to the rapid Moon Shoot and I was following them on the normal
raft line. They had taken on alot of water and were needing to bail. They tried
to make it to river left side in the section between Moon Shoot and Broken
Nose, but ended up missing the few eddies and continued on, full of water.
Being far river left they tried to work back to center leading into Broken
nose, but being weighted down they ran river left about 30 ft. off the river
bank. At this time I was about 20 ft. behind them. They dropped a nasty ledge
hole which held the raft. Being right behind them, I quickley boofed right,
into a tiny boiling eddie. When I turned around the raft was sideways in the
hole getting kicked. The raft tilted and I seen three guys come out of the
raft. The two guides stayed in the raft. The raft flushed out with one of the
swimmers close behind. I sat in the eddie waiting for the other two. Then the
next came out...I am guessing that he got recirculated about 2 times. The last
of the three got worked pretty hard. I counted him go back in at least 4 times
if not more. They both finally washed out and by this time the raft was almost
200 yards down stream. So it was me and these two guys. They were about 50 ft.
apart with me right between them. They were both in shock from the moment they
came out of the hole. I was screaming at both of them trying to break their
trance. Trying to get them to look me in the eyes. I would paddel to the left
and get one to respond to what I was saying and then I would paddel to the
right and get the other, just to turn around and find the first one turned
facing back up stream with his mouth open. They were so scared. They were both
screaming to get on my kayak. I told them no for the fear of my self being put
in the same situation. We drifted thru hell's half mile together.
Towards the bottom
one of the guys was looking pretty bad and so against my better judgement I
told him to climb on the back of my kayak. I felt him grab hold and I started
making my way river left(whcih we were closer to). I know that we went thru 2
meaty wave holes together and somehow I managed to keep upright. We went thru
the double trouble area together and he slipped off the back of my boat. It was
really hairy. There were logs and debris floating all around us. He washed into
a small set of trees on river left and got a body pin. That was all I needed. I
ripped into an eddie cast my boat towards the bank and started throwing my
rope. There were alot of small trees and branches so it was difficult to get a
clean line to him. He finally caught the rope and slipped off the trees. I
swung him in towards the bank. He landed in an eddie but being so exhausted he
had no power to swim and slipped out going over another little drop but finally
came to rest on a debris pile just below the location of the body pin. When I
got to him, he was completly exhausted, but breathing. He had a few abrassions
but noting major. I then watched as my kayak floated out of the eddie upsteam
and went sailing by.
I didn't find out about the other guy drowning
untill I got back to the river right side thanks to some great local rafters. I
heard that they did not get him out of the water untill sometime after Goforth
Creek. That's a long swim. There was also alot of debris on the river that day
which probably played a role. It was a difficult thing for me to have one of
them on each side of me, both screaming for help. I know that I did all that I
can do, but I can't shake the feeling of wishing I could have done more. I
don't regret kayaking that day, which I almost didn't, I just wish I was
writing about what a nice run it was that day and how beautiful the river was.
Anyways, that's the story in a nutshell. Everyone else was recovered and the
firefighters have returned to Florida(the local paper said they were from West
Tennessee). I don't know what the flow was or what it peaked at. We put on
sometime around noon I think. I know that it was surging while we were on.
Also, if anyone finds a green/black Wave Sport Stubby (it was reported going
throug Hell's Hole aprox an hour and a half later) contact me please.
Jeremy Perry
(423)-614-0344
mailo...@earthlink.net
or
Quest Expeditions
Ocoee, TN
Bill Tuthill
to reading Boatertalk; it's far too slow for me.
Sad story indeed. My condolences to the victim and his family. What
really got to me is that Jeremy Perry, the hero, saved the guy who looked
worse, so the guide(?), who seemed in better condition, flushed downstream
with nobody to rescue him.
Makes me glad to be alive after all those high-water rafting adventures
I have done against my better judgement.