Olympia Man Missing after Pe Ell River Run

Pe Ell, WA - On April 16, 2012, at approximately 4:25 p.m., deputies from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a missing person who was last seen participating in the Pe Ell River Run on Saturday, April 14th. The deputies learned Daniel Kuhn, a 24 year-old Olympia man, was rafting with several other people. He was last seen in a small rubber raft in the Chehalis River near the Elk Creek Road Bridge around 4:30 p.m. He fell behind the rest of his group and indicated he would meet them downriver near the Chandler Road Bridge. When he did not arrive by 8:00 p.m. Saturday, the rest of his group departed. They thought he may have left with other friends and did not realize he was missing until Monday afternoon when they made the report.

The Lewis County Sheriff's Department said yesterday that searchers from the Chehalis Fire Department’s Swift Water Rescue Team were navigating a three-mile stretch of river with kayaks attempting to locate any sign of the missing man. Deputies from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office are also following other potential leads to determine whether he may have left the area.

The Pe Ell River Run is an annual event held on the second Saturday of April. Participants navigate the river from Pe Ell to Doty utilizing various means of flotation devices.