By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews
YACHATS – A man who camped and rented the past two years around Yachats is presumed drowned after he attempted to rescue a woman and her two sons from the mouth of the Yachats River Sunday afternoon but then was swept away himself.
Friends identified the missing man as Sean Johnson, 52, who had camps north and south of town, had recently found better housing and often played his guitar outside the Yachats Post Office.
The woman, in turn, had to be rescued by Yachats and Seal Rock firefighters from the rocks just to the west of Yachats State Park after she saw Johnson in distress and tried to save him. Her sons made it back to shore with the help of a friend and bystander.
The woman, whose identity has not released by authorities, was taken to Samaritan Pacific Communities Hospital in Newport for treatment of minor injuries.
“She was out of breath, exhausted, hypothermic and banged up pretty good,” said Jeff Mathia, a paramedic and volunteer with the Seal Rock Fire District.
The original tragedy nearly turned worse when a second woman had to be pulled from the ocean off the state park after she became upset that Johnson was missing, put on a wetsuit and dove in trying to find him after paramedics repeatedly told her to stay on the shore.
After she started also to struggle in the water, firefighters had to stop their search for Johnson to rescue her, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Lincoln County Circuit Court by Oregon State Police.
“She almost became a victim herself,” said Mathia.
Two state police troopers arrested Caren G. Barcelo, 39, of Corvallis for interfering with firefighters and providing false information to a police officer. She spent Sunday and Monday nights in the Lincoln County Jail until released Tuesday and ordered to appear in court Sept. 30.
The rescues and resulting commotion drew dozens of onlookers to the state park Sunday evening and tributes and memorials to Johnson around town on Monday and Tuesday.
Jay McCabe of Yachats, a friend of Johnson’s who witnessed the initial incident, said a woman and two children were playing with boogie boards in the surf at the mouth of the Yachats River. Although they were wearing personal flotation devices, Johnson saw them getting farther out into the water and warned them to stay closer to shore. He then went into the water to bring them to the beach.
But McCabe said the ocean current quickly swept Johnson away.
“Sean was a strong swimmer and tried to save them,” McCabe said. “But the current just took him away.”
The first 9-1-1 call came at 4:38 p.m. Four firefighter/paramedics from Yachats and three from Seal Rock responded. Within an hour, crews from Central Coast Fire & Rescue and Pacific West Ambulance raced to Devils Churn south of Yachats to deal with a tourist who fell and injured himself on the rocks there.
Motor lifeboats from Newport and Florence searched the water just off the state park. A Coast Guard helicopter from North Bend criss-crossed the area until dark.
Johnson had visited Yachats for several years before making it his home during the Covid pandemic. He was well-known in the homeless community, by people who helped with social services, and had recently improved his living situation, friends and acquaintances said.
Yachats Community Presbyterian Church pastor Bob Barrett, who came to the scene Sunday evening, later said Johnson was one of the people who contributed to the planning for Don’s Place, a winter shelter that opened in 2023 at the church. Barrett said Johnson was active in the community, busked with his guitar around town and took on gardening and landscaping jobs to make pocket money.
“He recently met with the city manager’s camping ordinance group and continued to work with the Don’s Place advisory committee supporting efforts to help the unhoused,” Barrett said in a text to YachatsNews.
This is a comment from FaceBook that made me cry…
“He was a dear sweet guy. Just the other day I was carrying pet food into the food pantry and he was in the parking lot. He jumped up to help me carry the food inside. Always with a smile on his face and kind.”
Blessings to such a kind soul. I pray he has peace and is made whole and beautiful in eternity. Bless you for remembering his kindness.
Sean had been coming seasonally to Yachats for over 6 yrs. Then when Covid hit, he stayed put. He has not been camping for sometime now, and was actually renting a tiny cabin, just outside of town and even had his own vegetable garden going, He was a very private person, but kind and gentle and friendly, and very intelligent. He was happy in Yachats and had a gratitude filled heart, I am so sorry that he is gone. He died doing a selfless act, which does not surprise me about him.
Rest in Peace Sean, you will be missed. I am glad i had the opportunity to know you.
A tragic sad loss.
Sean always had a smile for me, and twice did excellent yard work for me. I hope someone knew how to contact his family. I asked him to call them, but he always declined. In talks with him, he said he was a believer in Jesus, so I’m glad he’s safe now with Him.
Thank you Sean for the beauty you brought to Yachats with your guitar music. You will be missed but will live in the heart of Yachats forever.
We love you so much. We will miss you Sean. You were such a nice person.
My daughter and I were there on Sunday, and in the days since, I’ve written a short poem about what we saw (see below). Please remove if this is not appropriate.
Sean the Good Samaritan
I saw you jump.
It was a strong, athletic dive,
and, as you started to swim,
I believed, as you believed,
that you would reach the person in distress.
But your pace slowed -the river and ocean both churned against you.
And your progress stopped -it must have been exhausting.
You began to disappear beneath the waves, and these moments seemed to lengthen
At last, I saw you raise your hand,
silhouetted against the ocean shimmer,
then nothing more.
In disbelief, oh god!, my desperate exclamation.
My husband, father and I were also there. (Sam was in tiedye overalls) helped one of the ladies with a half wetsuit out of the water moments before rescue arrived. Grateful rescue showed up quickly and swiftly got the injured lady out and off for help. So sad and horrifying … we had no idea there was a hero who dove in just moments before that didn’t resurface. God rest his soul; beautiful angel guardian of the sea.
Oh my, thank you for sharing.
He blessed me many times helping with packages. I was only able to repay him once with Beef Jerky. I am so glad I was able to do that now. Such a good human. I am so thankful he crossed my path.
Sean was my uncle, we hadn’t heard from him in a long time and my dad always wanted to know what was going on with his brother. We knew he was unhoused but we could never be able to contact him. To read all of these comments and see how many people he touched and the heroic act that he did does not surprise my family at all. I wish I knew him more growing up, I always heard about how wonderful he was and the smiles he would put on people’s faces but to see all the comments about how he made people’s day better in whichever way he could warms all of our hearts. Thank you all for being there while with him while we were not able to be
Bless him. Another hero without a cape. RIP Sean.