[Paddlewise] Death of Louis Catlin Gills

Preliminary report:

Louis Catlin Gills (age 82) died Friday, November 2, 2003 in a 
paddling accident on the Potomac River at the Washington Canoe Club 
in Washington, DC. It appears that he intended to launch his kayak 
from the clubhouse docks sometime between 1 and 2 pm on Friday 
afternoon. His boat was found in the debris around Key Bridge 
downstream from the docks at about 3:30pm (Washington Post, Nov 23, 
2003). It is possible that he fell in while trying to launch the boat. 

The air temperature was in the seventies Friday afternoon, the day 
was sunny with a light breeze. Due to recent rains the river level 
was running quite high. The Little Falls Gauge put the flow at 
100,000 CFS at about noon Friday after rising sharply during the 
morning, gauge water height almost 9 feet, and water temperature at 
51 degrees F. On Satuday morning, when a search was carried out by 
divers, the river was noted to be heavily loaded with debris (logs, etc). 
I have no estimate of the speed of the current under those 
conditions, but it must have been rather high. 

Lou routinely carried a PFD in his boat but didn't wear it. I have 
been told that he did not use a wetsuit of any kind. His body has 
not been recovered.


The boat he was using was a Fenja, which is a racing kayak about 
15-16 feet long. It is similar to a Slendar, a relatively stable 
racing training kayak. That is stable relative to other racing boats. 
Compared to average touring boats, it is not so stable! I'll have 
some measurements in the future. Such boats resist turning.
Both boats named have large cockpits that allow the racer to paddle 
with knees up in the cockpit. 

Lou was a WW ll Navy veteran; retired Navy Dept. reliability 
engineer, long time canoeist and kayaker; and a 48-year member and 
past president of the Washington Canoe Club. My wife and I have known 
him for many years. We even got to paddle with him a few times.
He is survived by his two daughters. He leaves behind a vast number 
of friends who will miss him greatly and remember him kindly for years to come.

Chuck Sutherland
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