Search Suspended For Missing Rafter: Sheriff

WASHOUGAL, WA — Search and rescue teams in southwest Washington have suspended their attempts to locate an Oregon man who reportedly went missing while floating the Washougal River this past weekend.

The Clark County Sheriff's Office reportedly chose to suspend its search for 30-year-old Stephen Barnaby of Portland after several attempts to locate him since Saturday night, which included the use of unmanned aircraft, ground teams, and marine units.

The search for Barnaby reportedly began after Clark County Sheriff's officials rescued 28-year-old Emily McCauley, also from Portland, from where her legs had gotten trapped in the fast-flowing river, near the 38700-block of Northeast Washougal River Road, around 8:15 p.m. Saturday, May 4.

It reportedly took Clark County Sheriff's Office rescue crews roughly two hours to extract McCauley, during which time she lost consciousness.

When she awoke in a local hospital, around 5 a.m. May 5, McCauley told sheriff's officials she was with someone else when she got stuck in the river. After returning to the area, sheriff's officials reportedly found the vehicle the pair had used to get to the river as well as an empty raft and some personal items belonging to Barnaby.

Despite searching all Sunday using various methods, however, no signs of Barnaby have been found, officials said Monday.

Barnaby is described as a white man with shoulder-length brown hair and a short brown beard. He was reportedly last seen wearing black pants and a black tee shirt.

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