False alarm after two inner tubes found floating in Barker Reservoir

Boulder County, Colo. - On Thursday, June 15, 2017 at approximately 5:04pm, the Boulder County Communications Center received a report of two teenage boys who were possibly in Barker Reservoir, located in the Town of Nederland, Boulder County, Colorado. It was reported that two inner tubes, that had been seen with the two teenage boys, had been found floating in the lake and the two teenage boys were no longer visible.

The following agencies were notified of the situation: Nederland Police, Nederland Fire, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Boulder County Emergency Services, Boulder Emergency Squad, Boulder Fire Dive Team, Longmont Emergency Unit, and Front Range Rescue Dogs.

Nederland Fire put a small boat into the lake and searched the area. They did not find anything to indicate that the two teenage boys were in the water.

A witness later called Nederland Police to report that they had seen two boys that possibly matched the description given by the original witnesses, who were wet and seen getting into a vehicle and leaving.

As we enter the summer season, we would like to ask those recreating in or near our waters to be mindful of their sports gear, especially the concern that can be created if an unattended inner tube, kayak, etc. is seen floating in a lake or down a creek. If you are recreating and lose a piece of gear in the water that could be construed as belonging to a possible drowning victim, please call our non-emergency dispatch line at 303-441-4444 with a description of the item and your location to avoid creating a false alarm and unnecessarily activating rescue personnel, potentially drawing them away from other emergency situations.

When possible, it would also be helpful for you to attach your name and/or contact information to your equipment so that you may be contacted if it is located.

The Nederland Police Department case number for this incident is: N17-3337.

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/s/Sgt. Clay Leak