BOISE, Idaho — Float season on the Boise River just began last Tuesday and already an abnormally high number of people have had to be rescued, according to the Boise Fire department.
Rescue crews were dispatched 11 different times to the river on Saturday.
"Within those 11 calls, there were about 35 people we helped off the river in some capacity and two of them could be classified as near-drownings," said Battalion Chief Steve Rasulo with the Boise Fire Department. "So had our dives teams not been there, there is a possibility those two individuals would have drowned."
He says most rescues happen when people tie their rafts and tubes together or getting stuck on bushes that pop cheaper tubes.
"They hit some of the underbrush, it tears the raft open and now they are in the water in some cases not having life jackets and they are on their own to fend for themselves," Rasulo said.
Harry Rourke, who floated the river Sunday, said he saw several floaters pop their tubes.
"There is a lot of shrubbery that needs to be cleaned up from the shorelines and there is a lot of punctured rafts," Rourke said.
People also not wearing proper shoes that give floaters something to grip against slippery rocks and not wearing life jackets also contribute to more rescues.
"This is a busier year so far and part of that could be the sheer number of people who are floating," Rasulo said.
For most people that float the six-mile stretch of the Boise River between Barber and Ann Morrison parks, it's smooth sailing. But accidents can happen so safety needs to be kept in mind whenever on the river.
"Good footwear that stay on their feet, life jackets, everybody should be wearing them, kids under 14 have to wear them, don't tie rafts together," Rasulo said.