Authorities in Idaho are still patrolling the banks of the South Fork of the Clearwater River in hopes of finding the body of a Kalispell man who went missing April 9.

Idaho County Sheriff Doug Giddings said dive teams were called in April 10 or 11 to see if it might be possible to search the waters for Burke Despain, 64, who is believed to have drowned.

“There is a possibility he is in one place, but we can’t risk a life for somebody that has already passed,” Giddings said, explaining that spring runoff has the river too swollen for searchers to go in.

Despain was reported missing near Grangeville in the area of Idaho Highway 14 at milepost 21, where he and his son Jason were camping. When Jason awoke April 9, he was unable to locate his father.

The Idaho County Sheriff’s Office along with search and rescue personnel, including a search dog, responded. The search of the surrounding area roads, river and river banks was unsuccessful in locating Despain on Saturday. However, the search dog indicated Despain had gone to a nearby river bank, where it is believed he slipped and fell into the river.

Searchers believed early on that Despain likely had drowned, but still scoured the surrounding area for any sign or clue that something else might have happened to him. Family members came in from Utah and searched for five days after the disappearance, Giddings said.

“We do our due diligence and look at all the possibilities,” Giddings said.

Despain has been a salesman for Dakota Supply Group in Kalispell for many years.

Giddings did not have any idea of when the waters might recede enough for dive teams to resume a search.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or [email protected].