Boat towing men on inner tube accidentally runs them over in river, Oregon rescuers say

UPDATE: A 20-year-old man died Thursday, July 14, from injuries after this incident, according to the Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office. The man’s identity has not been publicly released. The other person in the incident continues getting medical treatment. The original story is below.

Two men were hurt, one critically, when they were hit by a boat towing them on an inner tube in the Willamette River, firefighters in Oregon reported.

The accident happened shortly before 4 p.m. Monday, July 11, at Rogers Landing in Newberg, Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue wrote on Twitter.

“The boat was actually towing the two inner-tubers behind them and they ended up turning in one direction and then corrected back the other direction, which swung the inner tube around,” Kim Haughn with the agency told KOIN.

One man was taken by helicopter to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, firefighters reported.

“They were all known to each other so this is absolutely devastating to everyone involved,” Haughn told KGW. All four are from Brooks, Oregon.

The Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office told KATU the people in the boat are cooperating with the investigation and showed no signs of impairment.

“With the temperatures getting warm, you’re going to see more people out on the water so just be cognizant of your surroundings at all times,” Haughn told KOIN.

Newberg is a city of about 24,000 people southwest of Portland.

This story was originally published July 12, 2022 at 2:10 PM with the headline "Boat towing men on inner tube accidentally runs them over in river, Oregon rescuers say."