Salt Lake City fire chief dies in rafting accident – ​​will be remembered for his adventurous life

SANDY — Friends of Captain Michael Harp reported on the fatal rafting accident from which the experienced firefighter did not survive.

Officials said Harp was trapped under his raft on Thursday after it tipped over while he and a group of about 20 friends were rafting on the Green River near Dinosaur National Monument in Colorado.

Salt Lake City fire chief dies in rafting accident at Dinosaur National Monument

“He made the most of the time he wasn’t fighting fires,” said Harp’s friend Jace Pearce, who was on the Green River trip. “He took advantage of every opportunity he had, skiing, river rafting, hiking, canyoneering.”

“He was not a stranger”

Pearce said the group had planned to raft down the river for five days and four nights, but a tragedy ended their plans prematurely.

“This river was no stranger to him, and many other rivers around here were no stranger to him either,” Pearce said.

Pearce said the group shared 10 boats, with two people aboard a large raft. He had previously taken private, approved river trips with Harp.

Officials said the accident occurred near Hells Half Mile, a section of class three and four rapids on the Green River in the Canyon of Lodore.

“After we went through the rapids, about half a mile down a bend, we heard on the radio that Mike had capsized his boat,” Pearce said.

Fire Captain Mike Harp of Salt Lake City. (Salt Lake City Fire Department)

Pearce said it was a risk inherent in the hobby, but what he saw shocked him.

“I saw his boat wedged sideways between these two rocks and my first thought was, ‘How did this happen?'” he said.

“I saw them throwing things off the boat and thought we’d go up and help them.”

Pearce said he did not see the accident, but other group members told him it happened so quickly that Harp could not have done anything to prevent it.

“His partner Irena, who was at the front of the boat, had shot out and made it between the rocks before the boat came down on him and trapped him underneath,” he said.

He said the group knew their friend was gone, but they did what they could to recover his body.

“One of our guys had climbed up onto the rocks and tied an empty water jug ​​to his ankle because we knew it would be difficult to recover his body once the boat was freed,” Pearce said.

‘We found him’

Rangers said Harp’s body was found 10 miles downstream around 8 a.m. Friday.

“Without the blue water jar, he definitely would have been lost in that river,” Pearce said. “Knowing we found him has helped us a lot with closure.”

Pearce said they spent about four hours freeing Harp’s boat using pulleys and ropes.

“It was just hard to see and deal with,” he said.

He said park rangers were an incredible help in getting the group out of the water after the accident.

“They had arranged to have our vehicles taken from the original Split Mountain drop-off site to this other drop-off site called Echo Park,” Pearce said. “We only had to travel about five miles to get to the drop-off site instead of 40. When we got to the boat ramp, they brought a whole trauma support team with therapists.”

Pearce said the group, including Harp’s son Austin, who was with them, have been working through their grief together since arriving home.

“Austin and Ariel are both great people,” Pearce said. “They both loved being outside. They went on all the adventures with him.”

Pearce said Harp’s daughter Ariel was in China when the accident happened.

“Ariel is in college and just arrived in China last week,” he said. “She was going there for two months to study abroad, but now she’s obviously on her way home to take care of the whole situation.”

A *GoFundMe account has been set up to help Harp’s children.

A celebration of life

The rafting group came together on Sunday evening to celebrate Harp’s life.

“We all agree that Mike couldn’t have asked for any other adventure,” Pearce said. “And he was happy until his last moment.”

Now they see that the father, firefighter, hero and adventurer is getting the attention and recognition that they believe he deserves.

“When I first met him, I didn’t know he was a firefighter, and to find out that was pretty surprising,” Pearce said. “But at the same time, it made a lot of sense. He definitely has that way about him of really caring about people, and he wants to help where he can.”

Pearce said he and his friends reminded each other to “live like Mike.”

“Every chance he got, he did something he enjoyed. So that’s my biggest takeaway from Mike: Live life to the fullest,” he said.

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