Newport Beach man dies in rafting accident on Green River in Dinosaur National Monument
A Newport Beach man died in a rafting accident Saturday on the Green River in Dinosaur National Monument, National Park Service officials said.
Anthony Vasi, 47, was on a commercial rafting trip with family and friends in a remote part of the river, which straddles Colorado and Utah, when their raft got stuck on a rock in the “Birth Canal” among the rapids at Triplet Falls, ejecting Vasi and several other passengers.
A rescue swimmer was able to reach Vasi and move him from behind the rock and into the main current, but he was unresponsive. Vasi was transported to a gravel bar downstream where CPR was performed.
A medical helicopter was called to transport Vasi, who was declared dead at the scene.
“Dinosaur National Monument rangers traveled by raft to the scene of the incident to conduct an investigation and assist the rest of the group in reaching Echo Park, where they exited the river on Sunday around noon,” the park service said in a release.
Park officials said Triplet Falls — which is surrounded by steep canyon walls, doesn’t have cell service and has a Class III difficulty rating — had a river flow of approximately 2,350 cubic feet per second during Saturday’s rafting trip.
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