Kings River Expeditions ends white water rafting season early due to Basin Fire

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Businesses are still feeling the impacts of the Basin Fire, even though it's now fully contained.

The 2024 white water rafting season came to a rapid halt for Kings River Expeditions when the Basin Fire broke out in the Fresno County mountains.

The fire put a damper on hundreds of summer plans.

"Everyone was just so excited to be rocking and rolling," said owner Casey Cornell. "Then this fire hits and it's pretty devastating."

Just days after the Basin Fire broke out, the Sierra National Forest announced that parts of the forest would be closed until the end of July, as hundreds of firefighters worked to put out the flames.

"We realized as soon as that order went out that we were going to be shutting down for the season," said Cornell.

The news of the partial forest closure came at the worst possible time for the rafting company.

Cornell says more than 1,200 people were booked to go on river expeditions through July.

While they were able to refund the money and get their employees paid, the owners of the rafting company were left in a tight financial spot.

"It has left us nervous about getting up and going for the 2025 season," said Cornell.

Kings River Expeditions has been around for 52 years, with the Cornell's swiftly leading the company for the last two. It's not the first time a wildfire has hurt business.

"We did deal with the Wildcat Fire last year," said Cornell. "That one they got a handle on quickly. It did shut us down for a week."

Keeping Kings River Expeditions afloat isn't easy or cheap.

"Our whole camp setup, all the insurances and permit fees that we have to pre-pay ahead of time," said Cornell. "Those are some significant bills, especially here in California. There's a lot of expenses that we have to get covered."

To help keep business going, Kings River Expedition is turning to the community for support.

The company set up an online store to help cover the costs lost from this season.

Cornell said every little bit helps.

"It may just be a hat or a shirt to someone else," said Cornell. "But for us, it does go a long way in ensuring that we do keep this place going."

While the fire did get close to their camp, nothing was damaged. Cornell says their focus now is making a splash in the 2025 rafting season.

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