Barbara Lawlor, Nederland.  When people on the shore of Barker Reservoir saw two empty inner tubes floating in the water they called 911 and Boulder County Dispatch on Thursday, June 15, around 5 p.m. The report stated that two teenage boys had been seen in the inner tubes earlier and were no longer visible, but the tubes were floating in the water.

The report was sent to the Nederland Police Department, the Nederland Fire Protection District, Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Boulder County Emergency Services, Boulder Emergency Squad, Boulder Fire Dive Team, Longmont Emergency Unit, and Front Range Rescue Dogs.

NFPD firefighters launched their small boat into the lake and searched the area, but did not find anything to indicate that the two teenage boys were in still the water.

Later, a witness called NPD to report that they had seen two boys that matched the description given by the original witnesses, who were wet and seen getting into a vehicle which left the area.

The search was called off.

The Nederland Police Department asks that, as we enter the summer season, those recreating in or near our waters should be mindful of their sports gear, especially the concern that can be created if an unattended inner tube, kayak, etc. is seen floating in a lake or down a creek.

"If you are recreating and lose a piece of gear in the water that could be construed as belonging to a possible drowning victim, please call our non-emergency dispatch line at 303-441-4444 with a description of the item and your location to avoid creating a false alarm and unnecessarily activating rescue personnel, potentially drawing them away from other emergency situations," asks NFPD chief Paul Carrill.

It would also be helpful to attach your name and/or contact information to your equipment so that you may be contacted if it is located.

(Originally published in the June 29, 2017 print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)