A 17-year-old surfer died after being trapped underwater at synthetic rapids put in in a river that runs by Bend, Ore.
Ben Murphy, of Bend, had been browsing Saturday on the “specialists” space of Bend Whitewater Park when he apparently bought a foot caught in one of many gates that controls water movement.
Different surfers rushed to attempt to free him however he remained trapped for about six minutes, till the whitewater movement was shut off. He was then pulled from the river and brought to a hospital, the place he was pronounced lifeless that evening.
In a public assertion, town’s parks division stated: “The whitewater park’s surf wave will stay flat till such time that we are able to absolutely assess what might need occurred on this tragedy.” It stated there have been no identified river circumstances on Saturday that will have precipitated heightened threat.
It's the first demise on the park, which opened in 2015. A collection of panels and bladders affixed to the mattress of the Deschutes River are used to create ripples and rapids in two channels, one for simple floating and the opposite for extra aggressive kayaking and browsing.
Murphy was a junior at Bend Tech Academy. Barely per week earlier than his demise, he was featured in a TV information report in regards to the faculty’s upcoming promenade — which, due to the pandemic shutdown, would have been his first faculty dance.