‘Doing everything we can’: Sheriff’s office committed to finding Louisiana man who fell in Snake River
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IDAHO FALLS — It’s been a week since a Louisiana man fell into the Snake River and was swept away by the swift current, and search and rescue teams have found no sign of him.
Still, Bonneville County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brian Lovell says the search will continue, even amid harsh water conditions.
“We’ve partnered with other agencies and other search and rescue groups from around (the area),” Lovell said Friday. “Today, Bingham County Search and Rescue is part of that.”
Green, a 54-year-old man from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, fell in the river on the afternoon of June 4 in an area north of the Broadway Street Bridge. He was in Idaho Falls for a business seminar and slipped on some rocks while visiting the river with a co-worker.
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Lovell said that water conditions have not changed since June 4, making it difficult to search for Green.
Despite this, Lovell said there isn’t a time he foresees when search and rescue teams will end their efforts to find Green. While they may reach a point when searches become less frequent, he said the sheriff’s office will keep working to recover the man’s body.
“We’re still doing everything we can, as much as possible, for the time being,” Lovell said.
Other incidents in the Snake River
On June 6, just two days into the search for Green, the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office was notified of a man found dead on a rock embankment near the Snake River.
The man was identified as Daniel Fuenets, 70, of Firth. Investigators said he died after falling onto the rocks near 65th South.
RELATED | Coroner identifies local man found dead near Snake River
Then on Thursday night, two teenagers were rescued from the Snake River after their inflatable kayak deflated.
According to a news release from the sheriff’s office, a call was made to dispatch at around 8 p.m. reporting a group of teens had been separated from their group in the Burns Creek area while rafting the Snake River.
RELATED | Stranded teens rescued from Snake River
A rescue boat was dispatched from the Byington Boat Ramp, and searchers on board found the missing teenagers near the Fullmer boat access.
Both teens were wearing life jackets and made it to shore, where they waited for rescuers.