Deep in Oregon’s hiking trails lies a picturesque natural pool – but do not allow its enticing blue waters lull you into a false sense of safety.

About three miles into the McKenzie River National Recreation Trail, hikers will come across the infamous Tamolitch Falls, also known as the Blue Pool. 

It was formed over 1,000 years ago by a lava flow that collapsed into a lava tube, creating the unusual shape. 

The filtration system created by the underground lava tubes makes the pool a crisp blue, but it also creates a glacial temperature so cold that entering the water can immediately cause hypothermia. 

On Friday a university student from Kansas became the latest person to die in the Blue Pool after it claimed the lives of at least two others in the past 13 years. Many others have been injured there.

As well as the surprisingly cold temperature of the water, its clarity can make it difficult to tell how deep the pool is and how close rocks are. 

Authorities have begged thrill seekers to stop jumping off the cliffs, some of which are up to 60 feet tall. 

There is also limited cell service in the area, meaning that if a medical emergency occurs it may take hours for first responders to arrive. 

Tamolitch Falls, also known as Blue Pool, is a popular tourist destination in Oregon. The water is still, clear and bright blue, but consistently stays at frigid temperatures 

Kenny Truong, 21, a business student at Wichita State University, died on Friday after jumping into the pool 

The Blue Pool was formed more than 1,000 years ago by a lava flow. The underground filtration system keeps the water at glacial temperatures 

Kenny Truong, 21, was at Tamolitch Falls with friends on Friday when he plunged into the sparkling blue water just before 9pm. 

Witnesses who called 911 said he was struggling to swim towards the shore before disappearing under the water. First responders attended the scene, but he did not survive, a spokesman for the Linn County Sheriff’s Office said. 

‘Tamolitch Falls is a breathtaking destination visited by people from throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond,’ the sheriff’s office added. 

‘It is also a place that has taken lives before and will take lives again if visitors do not understand what they are facing.’ 

In 2013, Alex Rovello, a tennis star at the University of Oregon, died on May 11 while cliff jumping with his friends. 

The Linn County Sheriff’s office said at the time that the 21-year-old jumped off a 60-foot cliff and was too deep in the frigid waters for bystanders to save him. 

Rovello’s family wrote on an online memorial page that he hit his face and chest first, was knocked out and drowned in the frigid water. 

Truong, a university student from Kansas, struggled to swim and disappeared underwater after jumping into the pool on Friday

Alex Rovello, a tennis star at the University of Oregon, died after jumping into the Blue Pool in 2013 

Rovello was an athletic college student. He won four state singles titles at Cleveland High School and was inducted into their Hall of Fame 

The young tennis star’s friends witnessed the horror as one frantically sprinted two miles to find cell phone service and call 911. 

‘Alex died at around 1.30pm. The response team recovered his body around midnight,’ Rovello’s father wrote on his memorial page. 

‘A teary-eyed investigator came to our house later that week. After looking at all of the information, including texts and video on Alex’s phone, the report actually gave us some relief. It was a total accident. No foul play. No drugs or alcohol. Nothing.’ 

Rovello was an athletic college student. He won four state singles titles at Cleveland High School and was inducted into their Hall of Fame before receiving a full-ride scholarship to play at the collegiate level.

Two years after Rovello’s death Joel Jesse Martin, a 52-year-old photographer, was taking pictures of the stunning blue water and fell 45 feet into shallow water, hitting his head. He died at the scene. 

Two witnesses, including one who was an emergency responder, had attempted to revive him. 

Martin owned a local construction business in central Oregon. 

He shared his scenic photography on his Facebook account and had set his cover photo to a picture he took of Crater Lake before his death. 

Joel Jesse Martin, 52, died in 2015 while photographing the Blue Pool. Officials said he fell 45 feet into shallow water and hit his head 

At least three people have died at Blue Pool since 2013 and countless others have been injured 

Authorities in Linn County are frequently called to administer complicated rescues at the Blue Pool, and in addition to the deaths the danger of the site has caused countless injuries. 

The Sweet Home Fire District said the US Coast Guard airlifted an injured person in July 2023 and rescued two more individuals two weeks later. 

Darren Cross, the McKenzie River district manager for the Willamette National Forest, told The Oregonian at the time that the Blue Pool has created a ‘huge burden’ for local officials. 

A swimming ban was proposed but legislation enforcing it was never approved.

‘Once people go there, there’s no way to control what they do. I don’t know that people understand how serious the dangers are,’ Cross said at the time. 

‘I’m exasperated by it. I just don’t know what to do.’ 

The challenge facing authorities has become all the more difficult since social media influencers discovered the enchanting hideaway. 

The Blue Pool was featured in a recent Reel shared by a popular fitness page with over 74,000 followers. 

Multiple injuries in 2023 prompted officials to consider banning swimming, but legislation was never enacted 

The US Coast Guard airlifted an injured person from the Blue Pool in July 2023 and rescued two others two weeks later, according to the local fire department

The influencer warned that temperatures at the pool remain at around 37 degrees Fahrenheit, but many commenters criticized the ethics of posting about swimming there. 

‘Posting this like Blue Pool/Tamolitch is safe for swimming is wildly unethical. It is about 34°F year round,’ one comment read. 

‘Blue Pool is not for swimming, there are deaths and many rescues that happen yearly because the water is freezing, shallow and unsafe,’ another added.