Bodies of drowning victims recovered from White River Falls
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PORTLAND, Ore. - Two people, a man and a teenager, drowned Monday afternoon while on a church outing about four miles east of Tygh Valley, Ore. south of The Dalles.
The bodies of 15-year-old Caleb Justice and 26-year-old Jonathan Brett McLean were recovered from beneath a ledge behind White River Falls more than 24 hours later, according to the Wasco County Sheriff's Office.
The bodies were found at about 5:45 p.m. Tuesday by Redmond diver Mark Angel, said Wasco County's Chief Deputy Lane Magill, who also said the action of the water kept the bodies lodged beneath that ledge and prevented them from floating downriver.
Wasco County sheriff's deputies said Justice and McLean tried to walk behind the falls to take a photo at about 2 p.m. Monday.
Initial reports said Justice slipped and fell while taking pictures and McLean jumped in after him.
But Tuesday afternoon, Magill said it appeared Justice and McLean slipped on rocks and went into the water at about the same time.
Magill said they were walking on the rocks at the northern end of the pool about 4-6 feet above the water.
"In that process, when they went around, they both slipped on the rocks and went into the pool," Magill said. "Pretty much at the same time is kind of what we're understanding."
Despite throwing ropes to the pair, witnesses were unable to rescue them. Both ended up drowning, deputies said.
Magill said the water is moving fast in the pool.
"It's churning and boiling," he said. "Once you get sucked into that it'll hold you in that pool."
"Those rocks around there are constantly slick with moisture and they slipped on those rocks," Magill added. "It's a tragic accident."
Justice was a member of a River Rock Church group, made up of members mostly from the Portland and Vancouver area.
Justice's pastor at the church said the boy had a sweet personality and a passion for Jesus.
"It was definitely evident in his life," Paul Ireland said. "He was a joy to be around and he was just a great kid."
McLean was a member of a different church group. It's not clear if he knew Justice before they were on the rocks together.
175 kids from five area churches were at the camp.
Zach Harvey lives across the street from the state park and says you can swim near the waterfall, but only if you know what you're doing.
"If you're not used to swimming in whitewater it's a weird feeling," he said. "It's a little scary and depending on people's reactions, some people panic."
A private church service in Camas, Wash. was held for McLean Tuesday night.
The River Rock Church in Vancouver plans to hold a youth service for Justice at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
This version corrects information that was originally attributed to Mark Angel, a diver from Redmond, to Wasco County Sheriff's Office Chief Deputy Lane Magill. This version also removes a line that incorrectly said there were "no trespassing" signs on the rocks.
Why should we trust the âmediaâ?
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This week, our church and several others in the area have experienced a great loss. On Monday, two wonderful young men lost their lives at White River Falls in Oregon and many people were deeply impacted. The reports have continued to portray an inaccurate story of the events regardless of how many times witnesses have stated the truth. A KOIN 6 reporter who showed up at Harvest Community Church on Wednesday night said that the media had no choice but to print the official police report of the event. I thought the job of the media was to uncover and report the truth.
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Why the Wasco County Under-Sheriff persists in his version is beyond me because he must have heard eyewitness testimony to the contrary. His story portrays a teen and a counselor going behind the waterfall that is a restricted area where the public should not be and both slipping on wet rock and falling into the pool below. This is a lie.
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Caleb Justice enjoyed collecting rocks. Brett McLean loved taking pictures. Caleb asked Brett to take pictures of him collecting rocks around the rim of the lower pool. This is public area. There were no fences that were jumped as has been commented by readers of the news reports. They were not âout of boundsâ. Caleb slipped and fell into the pool. Brett did not âslip inâ. Brett jumped in. Not only did he jump in but he dove down below Caleb and with all his strength pushed him up toward the surface and the arms of two other young men (Daniel and Scott) who jumped into the turbulent waters to try to rescue Caleb. Daniel actually got a hold of Calebâs arm but could not hold on as the current pulled both Caleb and Brett away from him. I know Daniel and I know that he only got out because of a stick or branch that was held out to him from the shore. I heard Scott similarly found something to grab to keep from being swept down as well.
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The point here is not that WE donât know the truth. We do. But the memories of these young men are being diminished by the perpetuation of the lies about what happened. Brett was not a counselor who allowed a student into a restricted area and then sadly slipped and fell to his death. He used 100% of the last ounce of his life in an attempt to save a young man in his charge. He literally laid down his life for a friend. He is a hero and he deserves to be honored as such.Â
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Caleb was not a kid who defied rules and jumped fences to go where he did not belong. I didnât know him personally but Iâve read what he wrote about himself on Facebook and many other stories from those who did know him and I am amazed at the maturity and spiritual wisdom of this young man. His witness of his faith is obvious.
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Since then, the media keeps trying to show up at various events. Like the reporter on Wednesday looking for the high school even that had to be cancelled at River Rock because it was going to be a media circus. They want to capture pictures of students crying and praying and holding candles to tug at hearts and get ratings. But if they cannot even report the truth of factual events, why would we trust them with our hearts laid bare?  If you want to see a Hollywood scene, go rent âPay It Forwardâ. Theyâve got a great one at the end.
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If you want to have a picture of what grieving was like for these two, here are a couple of glimpses for you: The parents of a young man who did not return from camp came to the church to meet the bus with the rest of the students because they wanted to be there to welcome them home. This is a love that goes beyond earthly understanding. People met together and prayed and cried and sang songs of worship because while we grieve, we also have hope. Entire families came to greet their students off the bus â many taking time off work to do so. Parents who donât usually come out were there as well. Yes students and parents and staff alike hugged and cried. There were no candles at our prayer service on Tuesday nor at the arrival of the buses on Wednesday. Perhaps in some places there were. But you see, we know their lights are shining in Heaven now and so while we will miss them terribly and this place will be a little darker without them, we can rejoice in knowing that they are in the presence of their Lord and Savior and that there is no more sorrow and no more pain for them. And I am quite sure that Jesus greeted them both with the words so many of us long to hearâ¦âwell done, good and faithful servantâ.Â
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My heart just aches for the the families, friends, witnesses and kids that were at the camp. What was meant to be a week of great memories to be made turned into a tragic loss for so so many.Â
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My condolences to all that lost their loved ones.
Tragic. Â Such a sad story when anyone tries to save the life of another and doesn't make it. My thoughts are with the families.
Had Oregon State Parks not banned kayaking over the falls years ago, there likely would have been boaters in the water to effect a rescue.
Truly just a tragedy. It's a sad time for both families, and friends of the guys who lost their lives. Condolences to them all.Â
I love Oregon for the perfect nature it offers but some things I will not risk when in the wilderness. The beauty of our state can be deadly.
My condolences to their loved ones. I have no idea how I'd be able to function for a long time if I lost one of my kids.Â
Umm, the man in his 20s was part of a church group in Portland, Oregon. I think KATU has enough info on him to do some research and confirm that without me saying which one.Â
I heard somewhere that many other countries don't put up fences to save people from themselves. I think the problem is that people don't think about their own safety here in the US. Fences are put up everywhere to keep people out and warn of possible danger, even if that danger is small. This over excessive use of boundaries makes the boundaries less effective. People think the boundaries are put up for lesser people than themselves, and that they will be able to beat the danger. Everyone should learn to be more aware of their surroundings and respect the dangers that exist in nature and try to avoid them.
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My thoughts are with both families. Sorry for your loss.
http://nwhiker.com/WhiteRiverFalls.html
Thank you for sharing!
There always seems to be somebody that does dumb things.Â
TO KATU.  IT"S NOT WHITE FALLS IT's WHITE RIVER FALLS.  NO BODY DROWNED AT WHITE FALLS, there's no white falls anyplace that can be found.
 @Hiker123 Two young people perish and the headline is what stirs you . . .
 @Hiker123 You're right. The word "River" was inadvertently left out of the headline.
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Headline:
"Two drown at White Falls south of The Dalles"
And it's "more stupider"
Poor things. Â ):
I go hiking here all the time, People I guess have problems reading the multiple signs posted saying danger keep out. Its a sad tragedy and I feel sorry for the families but this could of been avoided. In order to get to that part of the falls you have to hop some fences.
@Scott Pritchard Ummm, WRONG!!! I'm not sure why you would spread this kind of lie, but there are NO fences that have to be hopped to get to the falls.....It is one thing to have no empathy for the families, but to lie in order to sway the opinions of others is just plain PATHETIC!
"In order to get to that part of the falls you have to hop some fences."
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It is too bad that people of all ages are unable to read warning signs, or obey common sense rules. The majority of rules are there for a reason, such as this.
Sad day for both families.
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@Just Lookin NO fences to be hopped...is pathetic that someone would spread this type of rumor to sway the opinion of others but this is not true about this location.....
 @Scott Pritchard Fences and etc. should not be necessary to keep people safe from themselves.  When you take extreme risks sometimes the results are not good.  Any time there is a group of children put into the care of adults, it's the adults responsibility to insure the safety of the children.  When my children were still at home it was rare that we would send them off with a group.  We, however would take them into wilderness areas even to White River Falls.  We taught them to recognize potential danger and deal with it in a safe manner.  Sometimes the safe manner was to turn around a leave. Â
It's a shame that two lives were lost because of one foolish attempt.  It didn't have to happen.  A better understanding of the dangers would have prevented it.  Fences will never stop this type of thing only understanding dangers and how to deal with them will.
@Hiker123 @Scott Pritchard NO Fences at this location to be jumped...just a basic stair steps down to the falls.....
 @Hiker123 "When you take extreme risks sometimes the results are not good.  Any time there is a group of children put into the care of adults, it's the adults responsibility to insure the safety of the children."
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What a nice, profound little lecture, and such a great place and time to do it.
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"It didn't have to happen."
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Had no idea. Thanks.
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 @Dienekes4160 It would mean less at another time and place.  People, like you, need to learn from others mistakes.  You won't learn these lessons any younger.
Before jumping to conclusions I'll have you know that the second person died trying to rescue a high school student that had fallen in.Â
None, not quite sure where you got your information, but it appears to be incorrect. They both went in at the same time; one did not attempt to rescue the other.
@catherine.henry Str8_Shooter is Correct. My daughter was actually at the youth camp and my daughter was also told by those who witness the event that Caleb fell and Brett jumped in right after him.....Gotta go with my daughter's version over the news story....
 @catherine.henry I have heard the same thing as 'None'.  I have a good friend whose co-workers are some of the adults that work with the youth groups that were there for a week-long trip.  Many that witnessed what happened say the same thing... that the high school student slipped in and the young adult jumped in to try to save him.
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Just because news media reports it does NOT mean that it's accurate!