A tragedy on the Cle Elum River near the Salmon La Sac campground over the weekend has led the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office to urge people to take safety precautions while enjoying the outdoors.

On Saturday, May 20, a group of seven young people from the Moses Lake and Warden area went rafting down the Cle Elum River with a makeshift raft composed of connected innertubes. Within minutes, the raft was caught by tree limbs and underwater hazards, according to a Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office news release.