Back-to-back July 4th drownings on Northern California river kill two in Nevada County
Two men drowned Thursday in back-to-back incidents on the Yuba River while recreating in the Sierra foothills on the Fourth of July, Nevada County fire department officials announced Thursday.
The unrelated incidents happened Thursday afternoon when rescuers from the Nevada County Consolidated Fire Department responded to a call at 1:27 p.m. and the second soon after on the Yuba River near Highway 49. Both men were pronounced dead following life-saving procedures.
Firefighters and a CHP helicopter responded to the first call after a man reportedly entered the water and did not resurface. Rescuers, working in an area difficult to access, were able to locate the man but he was unresponsive to CPR and died.
“Due to the challenging and steep terrain, units from Nevada County Consolidated Fire, North San Juan Fire Protection District, Cal Fire NEU, State Parks and Sierra Nevada Ambulance utilized a technical rope rescue system to gain rapid access to the victim,” fire department officials said.
The second drowning came minutes later when consolidated firefighters joined with the Penn Valley Fire Protection District to respond to a reports of a water rescue. Firefighters did not offer details about rescue or where the man’s body was found.
The identities of both men are expected to be released by the Nevada County Coroner’s Office.
“Our thoughts go out to the families who were affected by these tragic incidents today,” fire officials said.
