News release by the National Park Service
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK – The Sol Duc Falls area is closed while the Olympic National Park Search and Rescue (SAR) Team prepares to recover the body of an 18-year-old man who fell over the 50’ waterfall on June 8.
A park ranger located a completely submerged body pinned between the first and second falls late on June 9. It is likely that this is the visitor who fell over the falls the day before.
According to witnesses, the young man was walking across the rocks at the top of the falls when he slipped, resurfaced at the bottom of the waterfall, then submerged into the water again.
The park’s swiftwater and rope rescue teams began their search and evaluated rescue options immediately after the man disappeared. A ground team searched the riverbanks upstream from the trailhead and thermal imaging was used to search the water. Many local SAR partners joined the efforts, including Forks Ambulance, Forks Swiftwater, Olympic Ambulance, Clallam County Fire District 2, the Port Townsend and Sequim Police Departments, and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
SAR teams have combined their expertise in swiftwater rescue, park hydrology, and rope rescue to plan a safe recovery. The teams are considering multiple issues, including:
- Recent high temperatures and rapid snowmelt in the upper Sol Duc drainage have caused significantly high river flows.
- The target area is in a narrow canyon — a constriction point beneath the main falls. The speed and force of the water increases as it flows through this constriction point in the river.
- A second waterfall, whirlpool, and additional hazards are downstream from the target area.
- Vertical, 50-foot cliffs covered in algae and moss flank both sides of the target area.
The team will begin the operation as soon as the river conditions allow for a safe and successful recovery.
NATIONAL PARK NEWS
