MISSING PERSON
CASE #: 1998-57
Derek Christian Plotner
Status:
Open
Date of Last Contact:
Date of Last Contact:
Jurisdiction:
Missing From:
Happy Camp, CA
Summary:
Derek Christian Plotner, 25, was on a rafting trip on the Klamath River below Happy Camp, California, on June 18, 1998, when he jumped into the river near Oak Flat Creek. He was unable to reach the shore, was swept away by the fast, high current and disappeared from sight. His body has never been recovered, and the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office still lists him as a missing person.
Vital Statistics
Circumstances of Disappearance:
Derek Christian Plotner was 25 years old on Thursday, June 18, 1998, when he joined a rafting trip on the Klamath River in western Siskiyou County, downstream of the community of Happy Camp. According to the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office, Derek was last seen jumping into the river near Oak Flat Creek. He was wearing blue swimming shorts. Once in the water he was unable to get back to the shore; the current swept him downstream and out of sight of the others on the trip. An American Whitewater accident report for the same date and stretch of river describes a 25-year-old man on a commercial guided trip who jumped from a popular swimming rock below Happy Camp, surfaced, and began swimming against the current. The guides shouted for him to go downstream so they could catch him, but they lost sight of him. The river was running very high that June after a heavy snowpack and cool spring, and the report notes that the man had not been found as of the following day. The report does not name him. Derek was reported missing to the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office the same day. Despite the response at the time, his body was never recovered from the river. His case was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System in June 2024 and he remains listed as a missing person.
Additional Details:
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office at (530) 841-2900.
Case Last Updated:
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Share what you learnTimeline of Events
His case is entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs).
The missing rafter has not been found by the following day, according to an American Whitewater accident report describing the incident.
Derek Plotner jumps into the Klamath River near Oak Flat Creek, below Happy Camp, during a rafting trip. He is unable to reach shore and is swept away by the high current. He is reported missing to the Siskiyou County Sheriff's Office the same day.
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