2 men safe after almost drowning

Two Uintah County men survived a near-drowning incident in the Green River.

Zacariah Smith, from Vernal, and Dayne Jacobsen, from Jensen, both 19, were swimming in the Green River near the Split Mountain campground Sunday when a current pulled them under the water and swept them downstream, according to the Uintah County Sheriff's Office.

Other people swimming in the river called 911 to report that the two men had drowned. Five agencies responded to the call, but when they arrived, they found the two men safe on an island in the middle of the river.

The search-and-rescue team brought them back in a lifeboat. Smith, who was exhausted from fighting the current, was transported to Ashley Regional Medical Center in Vernal.

— Michael R. McFall