The Front Range’s swift rivers and lazy lakes offered a reprieve from near record-breaking temperatures over the weekend, but they also brought tragedy in the form of three drownings.
Temperatures in Denver stretched to 81 degrees Sunday, 2 degrees shy of the record for the date, said Carl Burroughs of the National Weather Service.
But recent rainstorms across the Front Range – combined with seasonal snowpack melting – made some rivers and streams dangerously fast over the weekend, he said.
Rodney Lamoreaux, 49, drowned Saturday when he attempted to cross the South Platte River and was swept under, said Margie Martinez, Weld County sheriff’s spokeswoman.
Lamoreaux, of Aurora, was turkey hunting with his brother at the Centennial Valley State Wildlife Area near County Roads 65 and 380, Martinez said.
She said the river was in “flood stages” last week but had begun to recede Friday evening.
In Laramie, Andrew Schrock, 2, drowned Saturday after falling into Pioneer Canal while playing with his 6-year-old brother, said Lt. Michael Garcia of the Albany County Sheriff’s Office. Unusually fast waters swept the boy under after he fell off a bridge, Garcia said.
Also Saturday, a Fort Carson soldier drowned while fishing in the Womack Reservoir when his boat capsized, said Roger Edwards, a Fort Carson spokesman.
It is not known why the boat overturned, he said.
Sunday’s near-record temperatures prompted people to test the waters at Denver’s Confluence Park, where the South Platte nearly overflowed its banks as dozens waded in the shallow regions.
A Colorado kayaking veteran of 15 years, Don Clark, 56, said the waters were more forceful than usual for this time of year but didn’t seem to be dangerous.
“It’s roaring today,” he said. “But it’s a beautiful day to stretch the ol’ back out and get ready for the season.”
Standing on the banks of a 100-foot rapids section, Rita Ralhan, 31, offered hesitant replies to Taylor Bachman, 33, as he weighed a descent downriver.
Their kayak – a 12-foot, two-person inflatable – would offer little resistance to the churning waters and large boulders.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Ralhan told Bachman. “I think you’re doing this one by yourself.”
Staff writer Sean McDonald can be reached at 303-954-1661 or smcdonald@denverpost.com.
