As tubers flock to Colorado rivers, rescue crews urge safety and awareness

Yahoo

01-06-2025

DENVER (KDVR) — As the weather starts to heat up, many around the state look to cool off by floating down a river in a tube. While it can be a fun time, rescue crews encourage people to enjoy the water safely.
Rockies set several more unwanted records on Saturday
Lt. Doug Picone at West Metro Fire Rescue said during the summer months, his team responds to water rescue calls about two or three times a week, but also said they're a daily occurrence around the metro area as a whole.
'Each and every day it's getting more and more busy,' said Picone. 'Every time we go by the river, we see more and more people out.'
As the weather continues to heat up and more people flock to rivers like Clear Creek in Golden, the chance for rescues grows.
'It's more and more dangerous as the weather gets nicer and we just have not hit that peak sunshine yet,' said Picone.
The sunshine plays a big factor. While tubers took to a relatively slow-moving river on Saturday, it could look entirely different in a few weeks.
'We haven't had that increase in temperature to melt the snowmelt to bring the really rapid waters down,' he said.
He encourages people to keep an eye on water speeds, which can change from safe to dangerous quickly.
They underestimate the water's ability to swiftly take you away,' said Picone.
He also stresses being aware of the water temperature, because it comes from snow melt, it's a near certainty that the water will be cold, and prolonged exposure can lead to his team being called.
'That water can definitely bring your body temperature down, create hypothermia,' said Picone.
If you do go out, Picone said it's best to do it sober.
'Drugs and alcohol and water and tubing can be a very poor mix,' he said.
2 separate crashes occur in same vicinity of I-70 on Saturday afternoon
No matter what time of the summer you decide to hit the river, your best practice is simply to be aware.
'Be prepared because it can overwhelm you,' he said. 'Know what you're getting into.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.