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Official: Cool Rivers Are Tempting But Dangerous On Hot Days

Paul Cooper via Flickr CC

New Hampshire officials are warning anyone looking to beat the heat in local rivers may get swept away by deceptively strong currents.

Hooksett Fire Chief James Burkush says the recent rescue of five stranded kayakers on the Merrimack River in Hooksett shows the danger of the rivers. WMUR-TV reports  water levels are much higher than expected due to recent wet weather.

Patrick Malfait of Contoocook River Canoe Co. isn't renting any boats due to the high waters in the rivers, saying it's too dangerous to have people go out with the recent snow melting and rainwater feeding the river.

Malfait says the steep embankments of the river make rescuing anyone who falls in difficult, and that the waters are much colder than the air.

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