Stranded Paddle Boarders Rescued On Columbia River Near Vantage

Two women are recovering after becoming stranded on the Columbia River while paddle boarding near Vantage and requiring rescue.

The Ellensburg Daily Record reports marine patrol units with the Kittitas County Sheriff's Office responded to reports of the two women in distress at around 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Sheriff's Insp. Christopher Whitsett says the two women were part of a group of people from Auburn that also included two men who were all paddle boarding the Columbia River in windy conditions.

The two men reportedly each had their own paddleboards but the women were sharing the same board and had lost their paddle when they began drifting in three-foot chops with very cold water temperatures.

The two men were not wearing life vests but managed to swim to the Grant County side of the river, while the women were pulled from the water approximately 45 minutes after rescuers began looking for them.

The women were treated for hypothermia by medics at a dock on the Kittitas County side of the river.

Whitesett said the pair surely would have died if they hadn't been rescued and stressed the importance of recreational water safety, including always wearing a life jacket; properly supervising children; remaining aware of water conditions; and limiting alcohol consumption.