Teens without life jackets among 6 rescued from dangerous currents in Stanislaus River
Six people were rescued Wednesday from the fast-moving Stanislaus River near Oakdale after two separate groups became stranded or swept downstream in dangerous conditions, according to Modesto Fire Department Battalion Chief Jim Black.
Emergency crews responded just before 1 p.m. to the area of Horseshoe Bend near Orange Blossom Road after reports that three teenage girls from Ceres had fallen from a paddleboard and small raft and become stranded along the riverbank, Black said.
The girls were not wearing life jackets, though a small dachshund traveling with them was, he said.
Black said river flows had increased significantly earlier in the day after additional water was released from an upstream dam.
“We get updates every day on what the flows are going to be,” he said. “It was pushing 1,700 cubic feet per second. It was moving.”
Black said people often assume the Stanislaus River is calm and slow-moving, but conditions can rapidly change depending on dam releases upstream.
“People need to pay attention to what the flows are,” he said. “It all depends on how much water they let out of the dam above them. It could barely be enough to launch a boat, or it could be Class 3 rapids.”
While Modesto Fire’s rescue boat crew was attempting to reach the stranded teenagers, firefighters unexpectedly encountered a second emergency involving three kayakers — two women and a man — who had been tossed into the river and were being carried downstream by the current, Black said.
The three adults were wearing life jackets but were “floating down the river, struggling,” Black said.
Firefighters rescued the three adults before returning to retrieve the stranded teenagers, he said.
One woman suffered minor injuries, including bruising and a bleeding arm, and was treated at the scene by ambulance crews.
All six people were ultimately rescued and taken by fire crews back to a nearby parking area where their vehicles were parked, Black said.
Additional assistance was provided by Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District crews.
Black said the incidents likely mark the beginning of a busy river rescue season as temperatures rise and more people head to local waterways.
