Authorities believe the man likely drowned in the Payette River last weekend, the third person to die in the river since May 24.

Boise County Sheriff Scott Turner said two men from Eagle were jumping into the river from rocks and a bridge Friday night when one of them was abducted. The 24-year-old was last seen near the West Boise Street bridge, according to the sheriff.

“His friend tried to save him and couldn’t,” Turner told the Idaho Statesman by phone. “He almost drowned.”

The sheriff said rescuers quickly arrived on the scene after receiving a 911 call. The search team included two helicopters, Idaho Mountain Search and Rescue, the Gem County Sheriff’s Office and local rafting companies.

They searched the area until dark Friday and continued searching through the weekend, but without success, according to the sheriff. Turner had planned to send divers out Monday, but increased river flow made it too dangerous.

“We’re just assessing the situation as it happens until the river calms down a bit,” Turner said.

The disappearance of an Eagle man was the third fatal accident in Payette in a week.

On Friday, May 24, a man drowned when he was swept away by the current after jumping off the Alder Creek Bridge on the South Fork of the river in Garden Valley. Searchers did not find his body until the next day, Turner said.

That same day, a man died when his vehicle went into a river around 12:30 noon on Idaho Highway 55 between Horseshoe Bend and Banks, the Idaho Statesman previously reported.

Turner declined to provide the names of the victims.

The sheriff urged residents to exercise caution near the river.

“There’s still a lot of snow up in the mountains that’s melting and running off,” Turner said. “The river is running pretty high, pretty fast. People need to be aware of their surroundings and be aware that conditions in the river are still dangerous.”

He advised people still planning to vacation to wear life jackets and pay attention to water conditions.