UPDATE: CPW recovers body from Rampart Reservoir

UPDATE: SUNDAY 8/25/2024 11:21 a.m.

(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.) — CPW reported that the water rescue team recovered the body of the person who went missing in the Rampart Reservoir around 2 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 25.

According to CPW, the victim was a man paddleboarding with his dog on Saturday afternoon when strong winds caused him to fall into the reservoir. CSFD responded after witnesses reported the man falling into the water and disappearing. The dog initially remained on the paddleboard before swimming to shore in the 62-degree water.

CSFD crews conducted an aerial search with a helicopter before calling in CPW’s Marine Evidence Recovery Team (MERT), led by Boating Safety Program Manager Grant Brown. MERT used a specialized boat equipped with sonar and a submersible, remote-operated vehicle (ROV) with sonar, lights, and a video camera.

Brown and CPW rangers from Denver, Steamboat Springs, and Walsenburg arrived around 7 p.m. and conducted a grid search of the area where witnesses last saw the paddleboarder. The search was complicated by Rampart Reservoir’s 500-acre size and unique underwater rock formations.

At around 1 a.m., sonar detected the victim approximately 67 feet underwater. CPW rangers used an ROV to confirm and recover the body by 2 a.m. The El Paso County Coroner’s Office took custody of the remains around 4:30 a.m. and will identify the victim, determine the cause of death, and notify relatives.

“This is a tragedy and we offer our condolences to the family and friends of the victim,” Brown said. “We’ve experienced far too many water deaths in Colorado. We urge everyone on or near the water to please wear a life jacket. 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.”

According to CPW, there have been more than 30 recreational drownings in the state in 2024.

ORIGINAL STORY: CSFD: Water rescue becomes recovery at Rampart Reservoir

SATURDAY 8/24/2024 6:47 p.m.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) has reported that a rescue operation has been shifted to a recovery at Rampart Reservoir as of 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 24.

CSFD posted that crews were assisting Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) with a possible rescue at 5 p.m. on Saturday. According to CSFD, reports came in that a person went underwater and wasn’t seen coming back up.

CSFD Battalion 1, Special Operations Drone 52, and personnel from Station 17 Heavy Rescue and Dive responded to search for the missing person.

CSFD reported a half hour later that it had taken the lead in the incident and command had shifted it from a rescue to a recovery operation. CPW was assisting in getting equipment to help crews search the water.

The public is asked to avoid the reservoir while the search is ongoing.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado.