Post Falls man drowns in Spokane River at Corbin Park

A Post Falls man drowned while snorkeling in the Spokane River at Corbin Park today. Wayne O. Pennington, Jr., 43, was upstream from the Corbin Park boat launch by himself when he called for help. Witnesses called 911 about 11 a.m. Divers and boat crews found Pennington floating in the river about a quarter mile from the Pleasantview Bridge and about a mile downstream from Corbin Park. Kootenai County sheriff’s Major Ben Wolfinger said the river is very dangerous to swimmers and boaters below the Post Falls dam and urged them to stay away until the dam is closed. “There is still more than 10,000 cubic feet of water per second coming down the river today,” Wolfinger said in a news release. “The current is very strong and there are dangerous undertows that cannot be seen from the surface.” The incident remains under investigation.