Empty blue kayak found after man vanishes over Oregon waterfall, cops say
UPDATE: It’s believed the body of 20-year-old Marcelus Angelo Rodriguez was found May 4 on the Willamette River shoreline, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.
The original story is below.
An empty blue kayak was discovered a day after a man vanished over an Oregon waterfall, deputies said.
The man was first seen “in distress” at about 10:50 p.m. Saturday, April 12, on the Willamette River in Oregon City, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.
Onlookers said he was upstream from the Willamette Falls, deputies said.
Then they watched him go over the waterfall and vanish, deputies said.
Search teams quickly responded to the river and looked for him on land, on the river and by air.
His “blue hard-shell kayak” was found during search efforts at about 7:15 a.m. the next day, deputies said.
Deputies said they are not releasing his identity, but his family has been informed of his disappearance.
Willamette Falls is a 42-foot-tall horseshoe-shaped waterfall that is surrounded by a “multi-lift lock and canal system,” according to Oregon.com.
Oregon City is a less than 15-mile drive southeast from Portland.
This story was originally published April 14, 2025 at 10:14 AM with the headline "Empty blue kayak found after man vanishes over Oregon waterfall, cops say."
