Body of 17-year-old boy pulled from American River in Rancho Cordova, Metro Fire says

The body of a 17-year-old boy was pulled from the American River in Rancho Cordova after a lengthy search effort on Saturday night, according to the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District.

Capt. Chris Vestal, a Metro Fire spokesman, said crews were sent out to the river around 7 p.m. after a boy was seen going into the water but not resurfacing.

Vestal said visibility in the river was low, which made search efforts difficult for recovery teams. A remote-operated vehicle from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office was deployed to assist in the search for the boy in the water.

Details are scarce on the circumstances surrounding the drowning, Vestal said. It was not immediately clear if the boy was going for a swim or if there was some other reason for entering the water.

This story was originally published May 16, 2021 at 2:28 PM.