A Front Range man who disappeared in a rafting incident on the Colorado River last year has been found.
Grand County authorities confirm the remains of Thomas Russell, 61, of Littleton, were discovered May 21 near Rancho del Rio. He was last seen alive on June 1, 2024 in Gore Canyon, nearly 20 miles upstream. His remains were found in low water and identified by dental records.
Russell was boating with two other men when their raft flipped in Class IV whitewater. Another man, 56-year-old Brent Boulter, of Aurora, was pulled unresponsive from the water and died on scene. The third boater managed to self-rescue.
For weeks after the incident, rescue teams scoured miles of river from Radium Hot Springs to Two Bridges with no signs of Russell. They used kayaks, drones and even the nearby Union Pacific Railway to search.
Low water early this summer helped break the case. The stretch where authorities found Russell’s remains is down significantly right now. Boulders and islands often covered in water are showing. Some rafters are walking on the riverbed to navigate the shallows.
Russell was one of two people who went missing with no trace on the Colorado River in the past two years. On Memorial Day Weekend 2023 a 35-year-old Front Range man, Ari Harms, disappeared in an inflatable craft outside of Hot Sulphur Springs. Authorities believe he drowned. His remains were never found.