‘This is a critical time to avoid those streams’

With summer heat already setting up camp in eastern Idaho, jumping into some kind of body of water never looked so good. While going to the public pool is rarely a problem, search-and-rescue leaders and officials from the Department of Water Resources say it’s probably best to avoid rivers and streams for a few weeks. Those toasty temperatures mean spring snow melt is approaching its peak.

“We’re probably going to hit our peak flows sometime later this week,” saidTony Olenichak with the Department of Water Resources. “They’ve (the region’s rivers) really been coming up the last week. With the high temperatures, we still have some high elevation snow, it’s melting all that snow and it’s coming down in torrents.”

Olenichak says the high, muddy flows can create powerful undercurrents in some of the major rivers that can look deceptively calm on top. “If it’s above your ankles, it can be strong enough to sweep you up, I’ve experienced it myself,” Olenichak said. “”But this is the critical time period to kinda avoid those streams. When they’re muddy, they’re fast, and they’re very cold.”

The cold water is also a concern for search-and-rescue as people head to water spots that aren’t flowing quickly, like some of the area reservoirs.

“It’s the runoff coming down from the snow, from the mountains,” said Bryan Lovell with the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, which oversee’s the Bonneville County Search and Rescue team. “The temperature of the water is very very cold.”

Lovell said people going out on the rivers and lakes need to be prepared with life jackets and other equipment. He also said parents should plan ahead if they plan on taking their kids out on area waters, and should watch for signs of hypothermia.

Those looking to enjoy the region’s rivers won’t have to wait too long. The Department of Water Resources says water levels will start to drop in a little over two weeks, providing there are no major rain events in the near future.