The Enumclaw Fire Department and multiple other agencies rescued two teenagers from the Green River Gorge just two days after a man swimming in the area went missing and is now presumed drowned.
According to Chief Randy Fehr, Enucmlaw first responders were originally dispatched to Flaming Geyser State Park, but dispatch updated the location of the emergency to lead the department to the Green River Gorge. Rescuers were on scene by 7 p.m.
“A search was initiated and the patients were found on the resort side of the river near the Coal Bucket take out,” Fehr said in an email interview, referring to a rapids area named for a rusty bucket near the site. “All patients were accounted for and were walked back upstream to the beach. There were no major injuries that required aid.”
The EFD is warning other would-be-swimmers to stay out of the gorge and other fast-moving bodies of water.
“DO NOT swim in local rivers right now!! They are extremely dangerous!” a Facebook post reads. “The water is high, cold and moving fast! There are log jams and debris that cause ‘strainers’ that can pull victims under.”
Mountain View Fire and Rescue, Puget Sound RFA, Valley Regional RFA, and South King Fire assisted in the rescue.