Update: Sheriff’s Office Communications Director Erin Opsahl wrote in an email that a citizen found a kayak May 29 matching the description of the one Harms was seen with when he entered the Colorado River. The person found the kayak on the west end of Byers Canyon, and the sheriff’s office now has the boat. The search for Harms is ongoing.

The Grand County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday morning it will close the Colorado River through Byers Canyon between Hot Sulphur Springs and Parshall as part of its search for Ari Harms, a white male in his thirties who went missing from a campground in the area Sunday.

The river closure runs parallel to U.S. Highway 40 from milepost 197, or County Road 3, to milepost 201.5, or Park Street. The closure includes Pioneer Park, the campsite along the river from which Harms went missing. A sheriff’s office news release stated the closure is to ensure public safety and the safety of emergency responders during their ground and air search operations.

Sheriff’s deputies will also close Highway 40 in Byers Canyon in both directions intermittently from 8:30-9:30 a.m. The closures will be between Hot Sulphur Springs and County Road 50, or Beaver Creek Road. Road closures are to ensure safety during air operations and will only occur during active aircraft flight times. They should cause minimal impact and delays.