This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
An 8-year-old boy died Tuesday evening, hours after being pulled from the Ogden River.
Ogden police said Korbin Minchey died at Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City, after being flown to the hospital in extremely critical condition Tuesday evening. Minchey was an autistic third-grader at an Ogden-area elementary school, and had recently stayed with his mother at the Lantern House, an Ogden homeless shelter. In a Facebook post, shelter staff remembered Minchey Wednesday as "absolutely adorable," and "the kindest, most loving boy."
For an unknown reason, Minchey entered the cold and runoff-swollen river where it cuts through Big-Dee Sports Park near the mouth of Ogden Canyon. Minchey was spending the afternoon with his mother and another young family member at the park, Ogden police Lt. Tim Scott said.
Scott said the family was near their car, and hadn't seen Minchey for about five minutes. The mother realized something might be wrong when Minchey's service dog returned to the car without the boy. She went down to the river's edge and found her son's shoes set aside in some grass.
At about 4 p.m., Ogden firefighters dispersed along the riverbanks downstream, scanning the water for any sign of the youngster and asking people along Ogden River Parkway if they had seen him floating by. Several reports came in mentioning a boy floating downstream.
The river has been running at high levels due to warming temperatures rapidly melting the snowpack, and the water is extremely cold, officials said.
At about 4:30 p.m., a girl told a firefighter searching near Ogden Pioneer Stadium that she had noticed something in the water nearby. The firefighter then spotted what appeared to be clothes floating on the water, and jumped in.
He found the boy pinned underwater by a log stuck in the river. The log was just upstream of Washington Boulevard — about 1.7 miles downstream from where the boy apparently had jumped in.
Minchey was transported urgently to McKay-Dee Hospital, and later flown to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City. He was pronounced dead at 7:46 p.m. Tuesday.
Scott said based on the speed of the river, Minchey likely was trapped on the log for around 10 minutes or less. He said emergency officials remained hopeful that the boy might make it, however, because cold water increases chances of survival after spending an extended period without air.
Officials warn of low water temperatures and high flows in area rivers due to snowpack runoff. High water also brings with it plenty of "deadfall," or trees and other debris caught up in the swift currents. Such debris can easily trap swimmers underwater.
Lantern House staff said Minchey was an adventurous and talkative boy who "loved his mom very much," and was "always concerned for her well being and happiness."
The shelter said it is collecting funds to help Kristin Minchey with funeral arrangements. Donations may be made on the shelter's website, stannecenter.org, under the donate tab, by adding a note that says "for Korbin." Donations may also be made in person at 269 W. 33rd Street in Ogden.
Twitter: @lramseth