Colrain man missing in Montana

[ Originally published on: Thursday, July 31, 2008 ]

The search for a 21-year-old Colrain man, who took a running jump into the Kootenai River in Montana on Friday and hasn't been seen since, continued on Wednesday afternoon.

Lincoln Sheriff's Department Lt. Roby Bowe said Sam Sylvester jumped into the river from rocks that were located near the Swinging Bridge -- a popular spot near Kootenai Falls between Libby and Troy.

Sylvester graduated from Mohawk Trail Regional High School in 2005 and, according to the town street list, lived on Jacksonville Road with father, Scott Sylvester, mother, Victoria Howell, and sister, Gaelan Sylvester.

He was a junior at the University of Montana, studying forestry, according to a University Relations spokesman.

A multi-agency search-and-rescue operation began around 2:15 p.m. on Friday, including the sheriff's department and David and Thompson Search and Rescue out of Libby. The search continued into the evening with no results, and since then, Bowe said, the search has involved from 5 to 20 people using boats and personal watercraft to try to locate Sylvester.

On Saturday, a private plane searched the river to the Idaho border.

According to The Western News, a newspaper in Libby, a factor in survivability involves exactly where the jumper lands in the water.

'If they get in the current, the current will carry them downstream relatively fast,' Bowe said. 'If they jump into a pool, it's no problem. He did a running jump which carried him down in the current.'

Sylvester's mother, Howell, is a Shelburne veterinarian and his father, Scott, is a forester, according to Colrain's town clerk's office.

Brian Beck, principal of the Mohawk Trail Regional School, said Sylvester was a 'beloved kid.'

Beck said that while at Mohawk, Sylvester was an Advanced Placement student, was on the high honor roll for four years, was part of the music program for four years in the chorus, was a representative on the Student Council, a member of the local School Council (an advisory committee to the principal) and a varsity cross county and track athlete, 'where he was highly ranked in the state in both sports.'

He said that Sylvester had gone to college in Montana and that he still had many close friends in the school community, some who had graduated and some still at the school.

'He was deeply loved by his peers and exceptionally well respected by the faculty.'

 

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