Two missing rafters' bodies pulled from Narrows in Zion National Park

ZION NATIONAL PARK — The bodies of two rafters who have been missing since Saturday were pulled from the river in the Narrows area of Zion National Park on Monday.

About 9 a.m., a body was discovered in the North Fork of the Virgin River near the Gateway to the Zion Narrows, according to a prepared statement from park officials.

About 1:40 p.m., a second body was found in the river about two miles below where the first was found, said park spokesman Ron Terry.

At the same time the first body was discovered, a search and rescue operation was under way for two men who were overdue from their planned trip to float through the Zion Narrows on a raft Saturday afternoon.

Two men, both in their 20s and from Nevada, reportedly set off on a raft made of logs along the the Narrows, Terry said. It was reported that their intent was to hike to the confluence with Deep Creek, construct a log raft and float through the Narrows. The men did not have a permit from the park to be on the river as is required when the water level is running as high as it currently is, he said.

At the time, the north fork of the Virgin River was running about 250 cubic feet per second with water temperatures of 40 degrees.

"They did not talk with rangers," Terry said.

Family members of the men contacted park officials after they became overdue from their trip. The men were supposed to finish the 47-50 mile trip on Saturday afternoon in Hurricane, Washington County.

The victims didn't have any cold water gear or personal flotation devices and carried little food with them. According to the park, had the men checked in with park rangers, they would not have received a permit due to inappropriate planning and lack of personal safety equipment.

Park officials have reopened all areas of Zion Canyon that were temporarily closed during the search and body recoveries. The Washington County Sheriff's office is investigating the incident in cooperation with National Park Service, which is standard procedure in the case of a fatality in the park.

The names of the victims are being witheld pending all family members being notified.

— Pat Reavy and Lana Groves