from Darryl Pauline on FB: Will Hoxie broached a hidden log while paddling sweep on a 1000 cfs side channel of a 6000 cfs river. The group of 4 hiked up, paddled behind the log and tried to extricate for 45 minutes. Victim had water going over helmet mostly, a side branch lodged in his skirt and chest. If they had a saw they could have cut the log before victim drowned.
FB: They were all experienced boaters with all necessary gear. They were guides out on a private trip. One of them got pushed off line (high water) and into a strainer where his boat became lodged between branches. The other four were able to get to him and lifted his head up as much as possible but they believe the pressure of the water was too much and he lost consciousness- this is not confirmed by a medical professional just observation. One attempt to get him out ripped part of the victim’s pfd which speaks to the pounds of pressure he was under. After attempting rescue for 90 minutes, no sign of life and some bodily injuries to themselves they had to let go.
Water levels have increase to 8000 cfs, making a recovery impossible.
On Tuesday, 7/27/23, with around 4700 cfs, Tulare County Sheriff Search and Rescue attempted to retrieve deceased paddler Will Hoxie pinned in his kayak below Bombay rapid on Ant Canyon. The accident date was 13 days prior. The Tulare Sheriff was assisted by Kern S&R and friends of Will’s in safety kayaks. Unfortunately the flow was still too high to accomplish the recovery.
A static line was securely rigged across the river and a raft deployed from the line with a tag line to put it into position. Because of the river flow, the 3 deputies and rescue equipment in the raft were too unstable to ensure the safety of the team above the strainer where Will is located. It was a real disappointment to everyone involved.
The Sheriff reported to us another recovery will be attempted when the flow drops well below 4000.
The first photo was taken in the morning of safety teams being shuttled across to the right side of the river. The last videos are of the system being de-rigged after the aborted recovery effort in the late afternoon.
Kern and Tulare Search and Rescue struggling to retrieve kayaker's body from Kern River
The speed and high flows of the Kern River are hampering rescue crews' efforts, but they say they'll stay until it's done.
By: Corey O'Leary, 23ABC
Jun 15, 2023
KERNVILLE, Calif. (KERO) — The search continues tonight for the body of a man who died yesterday in the Kern River. Roughly 40 workers from both Kern County and Tulare County Search and Rescue Teams gathered at the Ant Canyon Campground north of Kernville to retrieve the body of the kayaker who died in the Kern River on Wednesday, June 14.
According to Sergeant Joe Saldana with KCSO Search and Rescue, one of the challenges facing the team is the water they're searching is currently a Class 5 rapids. "The water is running through here swiftly. The CFS is pretty high and there are a lot of obstacles, technical obstacles, that come into the situation when we are trying to run the subject," said Saldana.
KCSO is assisting the Tulare Sheriff's Office with the rescue with swift water specialists on site. The location of the kayaker's body is known and officials have a line of sight on it. However, the victim is still with the kayak, pinned to brush under the surface. Media Supervisor Ashley Ritchie with TCSO says the safety of the rescue team is a top priority. "It's life or death. With a tragic incident like this you see when 5 very experienced individuals, when something like this happens, it is an incredible risk for anybody to be on the water," said Ritchie.
The 5 experienced kayakers were traveling down the river when one of them got stuck in a dangerous situation. The 4 other kayakers who were with him attempted a rescue. "Four kayakers were trying to rescue the fifth for about an hour, but the flows were too big so they couldn't get him out," said Ritchie.
Search and Rescue says they are still formulating a plan to retrieve the fifth kayaker's body. One method discussed would involve using a helicopter, but given the pressure of the river, it would be too difficult for a single person to extract the body. Another option would be to send a crew on a raft that is attached to a rope running across the river. "So basically we are watching the weather. There is just not a lot we can… We have to wait for a cooling trend. Once that cooling trend appears, which it looks like it will be about Tuesday or Wednesday, and we can go in and get him," said Ritchie.
Ethan Moore, a local professional kayaker, spoke off-off camera about some of the kayakers involved, and that they believed the accident wasn't caused by the higher flows of the river, but was rather what he described as the result of a freak accident. Executive Director of the Kern River Conservancy Gary Ananian, who went up to the area to learn more about the rescue efforts, says he hasn't seen anything like this. "I've been here 10 years and I've never seen anybody on the kayaker level drown on this river," said Ananian. SAR plans on being near the site of the accident until they are able to retrieve the body and will be giving updates as needed.
‘Horribly tragic’: Kayaker dead on Kern River, deputies say
by: Victoria Meza, yourcentralvalley.com
Posted: Jun 15, 2023 / 05:28 PM PDT
TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Authorities are still making efforts to rescue the kayaker that was found dead on the Kern River, according to the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday. The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office says they received a call regarding five people trapped in their kayaks with one dead on Wednesday right before 5:30 p.m.
Deputies say upon arrival, they learned that the four individuals were not trapped but trying to help their friend.
“Those four individuals, for what I’ve been told, were trying to save their friends and took a good part of an hour to help him, and it just was the situation that couldn’t be reversed, and it’s horribly tragic,” said Ashley Schwarm with the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies from Tulare and Kern Counties say the water’s high flow is too dangerous, so they haven’t been able to retrieve the body that is, according to sheriff’s officials, still in the kayak flipped over.
Tulare County Sheriff’s Office says they know the position of the kayak, but due to its location and the dangerous high flow of the water, which is about 600 cubic feet per second (CFS), they are not able to retrieve the body and are still waiting for the water to cool down.
Sheriff’s officials states the five individuals were professional kayakers, and they knew what they were doing. “We hate to see anything like this ever happen. It’s tragic all around. These guys knew what they were doing, they were not doing anything wrong, and unfortunately one of them got into a situation that he couldn’t get out of,” said Schwarm.
The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office says they tried to ask for help from CHP to retrieve the body via helicopter, but it was not safe for them either.
Sheriff’s officials explained the water can change at any second, and it could get anyone in a situation from which they will not be able to get out, which is why they remind everyone to stay away from the water. According to deputies, the Kern River is closed to the public, but it’s open for professional kayakers and rafters.
