Chattahoochee safety top of mind as summer arrives

As inviting as it is this time of year, the Chattahoochee River is a dangerous place where one mistake can end your life, authorities warn.

Whether you are on a calm lake or the rushing rapids into downtown Columbus, all those planning to enjoy the river this summer need to use precaution and common sense, said Georgia Department of Natural Resources Enforcement Division Cpl. Mitch Oliver Tuesday.

To illustrate his point, Oliver had spent much of Monday night and Tuesday morning working a drowning recovery about 40 miles north of Columbus on the upper reaches of Lake Harding near Valley, Ala.

“Any river can be dangerous, but it can be especially dangerous on the Chattahoochee because it has so many currents and undertow,” Oliver said. “People think that is only an issue on the ocean, but they are on the river, as well.”

There were at least four drowning deaths on the Chattahoochee in Columbus last summer.

A 35-year-old man and 15-year-old boy drowned a year ago when they fell from their boat on Lake Oliver near the Big Eddy Club. A 14-year-old Alabama boy was swept into the water near the 13^th Street bridge in June. A man fleeing law enforcement drowned near Rotary Park in August.

None of the victims were wearing life jackets, authorities said.

“You do not need to get into the river unless you are wearing a life jacket,” said Columbus Fire and Emergency Medical Services Assistant Chief Robert Futrell. “In all of my years of doing this, I have never recovered a body with a life jacket on it.”

That applies to the river or lake, Oliver said.

“The first thing is wear a life jacket,” he said. “Georgia law requires that children under 13 wear personal floatation devices on moving boats. If you can or cannot swim, it is a good idea to wear a life jacket.”

To people planning to venture into the river, people need to understand the river and its dangers, said Columbus Fire and EMS Lt. Daniel Macon.

“We were out on the river Saturday operating our boats and noticed a number of people in the river without life preservers,” Macon said. “There was a triathlete swimming in the river with no life preserver, kids on the river walk steps with no life preservers and a couple of fishermen in boats with no life preservers.”

This is the fourth full summer of white water rafting on the 2.5-mile Chattahoochee River course that runs from just south of Bibb City into downtown Columbus. All of the customers and guides of Whitewater Express, the lone river outfitter in Columbus, are required to wear life jackets while on the course.

“Having a white-water rafting company on the river has actually helped us,” said Columbus Fire and Emergency Medical Services Assistant Chief Robert Futrell. “It has given us more eyes on the river at critical times during the day.”

The other issue, especially on the lakes, is alcohol, Oliver said. Those operating boats or personal watercraft are subject to Boating Under the Influence laws, which mandate that an operator cannot have a blood alcohol content of .08 or above.

“I don’t think we gave a BUI ticket on Lake Harding over the Memorial Day weekend,” Oliver said.

He attributes that to aggressive enforcement in previous years.

“We have been so diligent for so many years and have done our job to the point the boating public has become educated about those laws,” Oliver said. “People now know you have to have a sober operator. And I saw a lot of designated operators on the lake last weekend. So far, people seem to be behaving.”

Uptown Whitewater Management LLC, the nonprofit organization that manages the urban whitewater course, has produced a nearly three-minute river safety video aimed at those who use the river and are drawn to it. The organization has also erected “Kids don’t float” signs along the river’s edge.

“We are trying to get the word out how important it is to be safe on the Chattahoochee River,” said Uptown Whitewater Management President Richard Bishop. “The video has some humor in it, but that is to keep people’s attention throughout. We wanted it to be watched by parents and kids.”

This story was originally published May 31, 2016 at 4:52 PM with the headline "Chattahoochee safety top of mind as summer arrives."