The body of a man who went missing a year ago following a rafting accident on the Colorado Rider in the Gore Canyon was discovered late last month by the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado.
According to the Grand County Sheriff’s Office, the Grand County Communications center received a text to 911 reporting a subject who was not breathing in the Gore Canyon southwest of Kremmling on June 1st of 2024.
A host of agencies, including those from both the Grand County Sheriff’s Office and the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office, initially responded to the area. Reports from the scene received by a Garmin device showed that there had been a rafting accident and bystander CPR was in progress on an adult male. Sadly the man was later pronounced deceased by EMS.
An additional male subject was still missing after the raft capsized, and emergency responders used additional rafts, ground crew, Unmanned Aerial Systems, and a Union Pacific Railroad Hi-Rail to search the river and surrounding area. Unfortunately the search effort was unsuccessful at the time.
The deceased man was identified as Brent Boulter, a 56-year-old from Aurora, Colorado. The missing individual was identified as Thomas Russell, a 61-year-old from Littleton, Colorado. Preliminary reports indicated that both were without personal flotation devices. A third subject from their group was able to safely exit the water during the incident.
The search continued on June 2 with River Rangers from the Bureau of Land Management and an Officer with Colorado Parks and Wildlife using rafts and kayaks to travel the Colorado River from Radium to Two Bridges. The missing rafter was still unable to be located.
On May 21, 2025, the Eagle County Sheriff’s Office contacted the Grand County Sheriff’s Office to advise them that the missing Thomas Russell had been located in the Colorado River near Rancho Del Rio. A significant decrease in water in the area led to the discovery, and Russell’s next of kin was notified by the Grand County Coroner’s Office.
Our condolences are with the friends and family of the deceased at this time.