An Arizona man who was found dead in a Pagosa Springs hot spring on Sept. 25 has been identified as 54-year old Matthew Kochen, the Archuleta County Coroner’s Office said Monday.
Kochen was found face down in a small pool upstream of the Pagosa Hot Springs Resort and below the Hot Springs Boulevard Bridge around 1:30 p.m., coroner Dan Keuning said.
A witness in an adjacent pool noticed Kochen alive about 10 to 15 minutes before he was found dead, Keuning said. The witness had left the pool, but came back when he heard sirens.
Keuning said the cause of death was ruled an accidental drowning, influenced by alcohol intoxication. Keuning said Kochen’s blood tests have not been completed, but hot water (the pool is about 105 degrees) and alcohol is a dangerous combination.
“Being very relaxed with alcohol, hot water causes a reaction to actually make you pass out,” he said. “He knew how to swim, but you can’t swim if you’re not conscious.”
According to The Pagosa Sun, the Colorado State Patrol, Pagosa EMS and Pagosa Fire Protection district worked to revive Kochen, but he was pronounced dead at 2:15 p.m.
Kochen was living and working in Pagosa Springs, Keuning said.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
