Rafter in hospital after Skykomish River rescue

GOLD BAR -- A man in his late 20s nearly drowned after plunging from a white-water raft into the frigid Skykomish River near Gold Bar on Sunday afternoon. He was sent to Valley General Hospital in Monroe for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries and possible hypothermia, and later transferred to a major Seattle hospital as a precautionary measure, a supervisor with Valley General Hospital said.

The man, who became stranded before being plucked out of a deep ravine by rescuers, was one of five people on commercial river rafting trip that ran into rough waters and flipped at a series of falls called Boulder Drop.

The rapids downstream from Index are considered a class 5 run. The classification is on a rating system of 1 to 6 with six being the most dangerous.

Lt. Andrew Anderson with Snohomish County Fire District 26 in Gold Bar said everyone who fell out of the overturned raft was wearing a helmet and life vest. All but the injured man were able to pull themselves ashore.

The injured man was pulled to safety by firefighters and Snohomish County sheriff's search-and-rescue members who devised a rigging system, Anderson said.