One man dies, two rescued in separate Toutle river accidents

LONGVIEW — A 60-year-old Longview man died from a tubing accident on the North Fork Toutle River Saturday afternoon, just a day before two other tubers were rescued several blocks down the same river in an unrelated tubing expedition.

The Sheriff’s Office is not yet releasing the name of the deceased man because they are waiting to speak with family members and confirm his identity, Chief Criminal Deputy Troy Brightbill said Monday.

Deputies and aid were called out at about 3:10 p.m. Saturday to reports that the man had fallen from his tube while going through the rapids near the 3000 block of Tower Road and was unresponsive. His group helped him out of the water and was performing CPR, Brightbill said.

It is not yet clear how the victim died. Witnesses reported he was only under the water for a few seconds, and he had some scrapes that may have come from hitting debris in the river, Brightbill said. The Cowlitz County Coroner’s Office is investigating the cause and manner of the victim’s death.

In an unrelated incident Sunday evening near the same stretch of the river, aid crews rescued two tubers in the 2500 block of Tower Road.

Friends of the tubers came to a Castle Rock resident’s door that night asking for help for the two women who were stuck on a rock at the river.

The Cowlitz Dive Rescue team, Swift Water Rescue Team and local firefighters responded, deploying a boat to reach the stranded tubers, who were rescued from the water.

“The Toutle tends to be generally underestimated,” Brightbill said. “It’s a dangerous river. It’s definitely one to do some research on before going.”

Sections of the river are difficult to navigate, and debris from rocks to rebar and concrete thrown by the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption lies in parts of the river, Brightbill said.