PROVO, Utah (AP) - Utah emergency responders are warning residents that low water levels in the state’s rivers don’t make them any less dangerous.
Unified Fire Authority Capt. Jay Torgerson told the Deseret News during a water rescue training Thursday that extremely cold water and rocks in the river can present just as great a risk to swimmers as drowning.
Utah rivers are running low this year because of light snowfall last winter.
Rescuers say emergency calls have risen roughly 10 percent each year over the last several years, due largely to Utah’s increasing population.
April to June is the most dangerous time of the year, because spring runoff coming down the mountains creates fast-moving and icy cold water.
Six people drowned in Utah rivers last year.
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Information from: Deseret News, http://www.deseretnews.com
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