Man dies after falling off paddleboard into cold water in Colorado; dog survives after swimming to shore

WOODLAND PARK, Colo. – A paddleboarder’s body has been recovered from a reservoir near Colorado Springs, Colorado, after officials said the man went missing in a wind event Saturday afternoon.

Water rescue teams with Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) recovered the body early Sunday in Rampart Reservoir, west of Colorado Springs.

According to a CPW news release, the Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) responded to the initial call for help at the reservoir when witnesses reported that a man fell in and disappeared. A dog that was also on the paddleboard managed to initially stay on the board before later swimming to shore in water temperatures of 62 degrees.

CSFD staff began an immediate search using a helicopter before calling in CPW’s Marine Evidence Recovery Team, which used a specialized CPW boat equipped with multiple sonar devices, including a submersible, a remote-operated vehicle equipped with sonar, lights and a video camera.

About 1 a.m. local time, a sonar located the victim in the water some 67 feet deep. CPW rangers used their remote-operated vehicle to recover the body.

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“This is a tragedy, and we offer our condolences to the family and friends of the victim,” said Grant Brown, CPW’s boating safety program manager. “When someone is plunged into such cold water, the shock from cold water immersion can cause your entire body to cramp, leaving you unable to swim. You can die in one or two minutes.”

Including this weekend’s incident, Colorado has experienced more than 30 recreational drownings in 2024, according to an unofficial count by CPW.

“We’ve experienced far too many water deaths in Colorado,” Brown said. “We urge everyone on or near the water to please wear a life jacket.”

According to CPW, Rampart is a 500-acre reservoir owned by Colorado Springs Utilities located on the U.S. Forest Service’s Pike National Forest, located some 5 miles east of Woodland Park in far western El Paso County. The reservoir features a 230-foot-tall dam with unique underwater rock formations.

Original article source: Man dies after falling off paddleboard into cold water in Colorado; dog survives after swimming to shore