One person is dead and two more people are missing after a group of six was swept over a waterfall in Oregon on Saturday, officials said.
The group went over Dillon Falls on the Deschutes River west of Bend just before 3 p.m., which is when the 911 call came in, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook.
One person was pronounced dead at the scene, and a multiagency search-and-rescue mission is underway to find the two who are missing, according to the sheriff’s office.
The office did not immediately identify the person who died.
Three people were rescued from the water and taken by ambulance to the St. Charles Health System’s medical center in Bend, the sheriff’s office said. Their conditions are not known.
Dillon Falls, in central Oregon, is about 173 miles southeast of Portland. The falls have a 15-foot drop that turns into rapids when the water reaches the Deschutes River, according to Visit Central Oregon, which promotes tourism in the region.
Photos posted by the sheriff’s office show a hazard sign warning visitors of the waterfall nearby and indicating paddlers should wear life jackets.
The office, along with its search-and-rescue arm and Bend Fire and Rescue, responded Saturday. Bend police provided drones to help the search.
The sheriff’s office said its search-and-rescue team launched two drones in the Dillon Falls area Sunday. Fifteen members of a swift water rescue team searched areas highlighted by the drones, the sheriff’s office said.
Three K-9 teams also joined the search effort and worked with marine patrol boats to scour the area downstream of the falls, the sheriff’s office added.
No updates were available by Sunday night. The sheriff’s office said crews will resume their efforts Monday morning.
