Del Norte County Sheriff’s dispatchers confirmed that at least one person died after a boat capsized about 200 feet out from the mouth of the Klamath River on Thursday evening.

Bystanders near the area saw possibly five people connected with the boat, according to a report. They saw one subject on the beach, one coming onshore and two more in the water, according to sheriff’s dispatch.

“They called a helicopter to the scene (and an) ambulance,” DNSO secretary Diana Stanley told the Wild Rivers Outpost, reading off the dispatcher’s report from Thursday. “It looks like the (Yurok) Tribe launched a boat and somebody went up on the bluff to shine light on the water.”

Stanley confirmed that DNSO deputies responded to the scene and there was a confirmed death.

On Friday, Del Norte County Sheriff Erik Apperson said he would provide further information about the incident after speaking with the deputies who responded to the scene. He could not be reached for further comment on Friday.

In response to the incident, the Yurok Tribe in a Friday Facebook post referred their tribal members to counseling and support services through NCIDC and Two Feathers as well as Del Norte’s 24-7 crisis line.

The Yurok Tribal Council also announced that it was canceling its regular meetings next week to honor those who had died.

“This has been a sad week for the Yurok Tribe,” Chairman Joseph L. James said in a Facebook post Friday. “These tragedies impact all of us on a very personal level. Our prayers go out to all who are grieving during this challenging time.”

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