Boy missing in cold waters of American River in Folsom
The search will resume Wednesday morning for a 13-year-old boy who went missing after jumping into the American River downstream from Rainbow Bridge on Monday evening.
Searchers were pulled off the water late Tuesday afternoon so they could get some rest, said Richard Preston, superintendent of the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area. They will return to the river at 8 a.m. Wednesday, he said.
The youth jumped from a rock into the river at Negro Bar State Park and did not resurface, Preston said.
A search was conducted until late Monday night by state parks and Folsom fire and police personnel. Several agencies, including the Sacramento Drowning Accident Rescue Team, the Folsom and Sacramento Metro fire departments, and state parks provided boats and personnel for Tuesday’s search.
Preston said they focused on the area downstream from Rainbow Bridge and the swim beach at Negro Bar.
Releases from Folsom Dam are high and cold, prompting Preston to caution anyone who is considering entering the river.
“The water is probably 50 degrees and it is running pretty fast right now,” Preston said.
The river below Folsom Dam was running about 15,000 cfs Tuesday, he said, stressing that life jackets are a must for anyone on the river.
In another incident on the American River this week, five people – none wearing life vests – were aboard a raft when it hit the PCA pedestrian bridge, at Sacramento Bar near Sunrise Boulevard, and they fell into the water.
Three rafters made it to shore, but two grabbed onto the pilings of the old gravel company bridge and had to be rescued.
Bill Lindelof: 916-321-1079, @Lindelofnews
This story was originally published May 2, 2017 at 7:41 AM.