Lake Billy Chinook search ends in tragedy, as divers find Warm Springs man’s body in 42 feet of murky water

(Update: Divers find Warm Springs man in Lake Billy Chin)

CULVER, Ore. (KTVZ) – The search for a 31-year-old Warm Springs man who jumped into the Crooked River at Lake Billy Chinook with a friend late Sunday night and soon slipped underwater ended in tragedy late Wednesday afternoon when divers helped by sonar found Triston Boise’s body in 42 feet of water, Jefferson County Sheriff Jason Pollock said.

The two men had stopped their car and dove into the water late Sunday night from the Crooked River Bridge just south of the Crooked River Day-Use Area at The Cove Palisades State Park, Pollock said earlier in the week.

One of the men swam to shore before a responding deputy arrived on scene, checking on a report of their vehicle being in the middle of the two-lane bridge, blocking both lanes, the sheriff said.

“As the deputy arrived, the second subject disappeared under the water,” Pollock told NewsChannel 21. Both men were intoxicated, he added.

Sheriff’s deputies searched the water and shoreline for several hours overnight, but Boise could not be found. Search crews were back in the area on Monday, assisted by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Dive Team, Pollock said.

The sheriff said the search was suspended early Monday evening because a large algae bloom made visibility in the water difficult.

The sheriff’s office continued the search Tuesday with its own sonar equipment “in an attempt to locate anomalies on the bottom of the lake that would give an indication on where divers could search,” Pollock said Thursday.

About that time, a nonprofit dive team, Oregon Rescue Divers, arrived on the scene and offered to help look for Boise’s body, Pollock said. The deputies and divers spent several hours on Tuesday trying to locate his body, but were unsuccessful due to poor visibility under the water’s surface.

The divers returned to the lake around 2 p.m. Wednesday and spent 2 ½ hours scanning the lake with their own sonar equipment, searching for viable locations to dive, the sheriff said.

“At about 4:35 p.m., divers dove the lake while family watched and prayed from the bridge,” Pollock said. “At 4:41 p.m., divers located the body of Triston, submerged in 42 feet of water.”

"We would like to thank the efforts of the Jefferson County Fire & EMS, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Dive Team as well as the Oregon Rescue Divers for their assistance in this search and recovery," Pollock added.