Boulder’s Tube to Work Day Happening Amid Recent String of Deaths in Boulder Creek

The latest incident occurred on July 12 at around 4 a.m., with Boulder Police and Fire Rescue responding to a report of a woman who had been camping nearby and had fallen into the creek. Rescuers were able to pull her out of the water and perform CPR until she was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Weeks before, on June 15, a woman identified as Bibiana Mendiola Bocanegra, 48, was swept away by the Boulder Creek current as she attempted to help a family member who was in the water, according to authorities.

At that point, it was Boulder’s fifth water rescue in two weeks, and the city put out a statement saying, “First responders urge community members to recreate safely in the city, especially around water, which can be running stronger, deeper, and colder than it looks.”

Just days before the June 15 incident — on June 11 — a nine-year-old boy fell out of his tube in Boulder Creek and drowned. “We got to him as quickly as possible,” said Deputy Fire Chief of Operations Jeff Long in a statement. “It’s a terrible feeling to not be able to save someone. Especially when that someone is a child.”

Authorities have been urging visitors to display additional caution at Boulder Creek during run-off season, when water levels are higher because of mountain snowmelt.

Water-flow levels in Boulder Creek are currently not high enough to warrant the cancellation or delay of the quirky Tube to Work Day event, according to organizers and the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office.

Carrie Haverfield, spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, says creek closures occur when the water flow reaches a cubic-feet-per-second (CFS) rate “that is deemed too unsafe for single chamber water craft.”

“Our policy is to enact restrictions for watercraft such as single-chamber rafts, single-chamber belly boats and inner tubes on Boulder Creek when we have a sustained CFS level of 700 or above,” Haverfield says. “In the past several days, the gauges have measured between 100 to 200 CFS on Boulder Creek at Broadway.”

She adds that the sheriff’s office uses a Colorado Division of Water Resources website to monitor water levels, saying, “[We] enact restrictions if we meet our pre-established threshold.”

Tube to Work Day organizers have an even stricter threshold for water-flow levels: Spokesperson Lance Pangigutti says the safety range is 125 to 250 CFS.

“When levels exceed 500-plus CFS, the creek will be closed,” he says. “We do require extensive safety gear that none of these victims were wearing. All tubers must wear a helmet, shoes and life jacket.”

According to the event website, participants must sign a waiver and are prohibited from tying tubes together and showing up with “a cheap inner tube from Target.”

Tube to Work Day began in 2008 as a joke between two friends, the website says. By 2018 and 2019, more than 1,000 people showed up to participate. Hundreds of tuber commuters are expected at the July 14 event. It kicks off at 7 a.m. with a parade from Boulder’s Central Park to Eben G. Fine Park.

At 8:15 a.m., tubers will be released in waves to ride the river back to Central Park. A $20 ticket is required to participate, which covers the cost of insurance, medical staff and ambulances.

According to DWR, the Boulder Creek flow rate was at 108 CFS as of Thursday afternoon, July 13.

Dionne Waugh, spokesperson for the Boulder Police Department, says of the event: “The City of Boulder has participated in this event for many years, and that includes ensuring participants are safe and promoting water safety for everyone. We will continue keeping our community safe.”