3 dead in one week amid fierce waves in California river

Three people have drowned in the Trinity River in the span of a week, prompting authorities to issue extreme warnings about water safety.

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On Wednesday, around 4:15 p.m., a person was reported via 911 as having been caught in the river at Kimtu Beach in Willow Creek and swept downstream, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Thursday. According to authorities, a family member last saw the person on a flotation device before they were carried away by the river’s fierce current. The floating device was found overturned, the Sheriff’s Office said. 

Deputies from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office and emergency crews were able to find the person and pull them from the water. The person was unconscious and rescuers conducted life-saving measures including CPR, but the person was pronounced dead at the scene, the Sheriff’s Office said. Officials will determine the official cause of death after autopsy results, the statement said. 

Two other drownings have occurred at the Trinity River within the last several days, one on July 18 near Burwood Lane in Willow Creek after a woman’s life vest became tangled in a tree branch and the other on July 16 in the Campbell Creek area when a person was swept away by strong waters, SFGATE previously reported. 

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is urging the public to “exercise extreme caution” because the strong currents, cold water and rapidly changing river conditions create serious risks for anyone entering the river, even experienced swimmers. Rescuing people from the water can also be difficult in the remote river areas, causing delays to emergency services, the Sheriff’s Office said. 

“Even when it’s hot outside, the river is still very cold,” the Sheriff’s Office warned. “The cold water can cause your muscles to seize up, making it difficult or even impossible to swim. Just a few seconds in cold, fast-moving water can lead to tragedy.” 

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The Sheriff’s Office called the river “deceptively dangerous” and said it’s critical to always wear a proper life jacket, never leave children unattended, avoid alcohol and drugs when swimming and stay informed about the river conditions, including abiding by all closures and warnings. Visitors should never underestimate the power of the current, the Sheriff’s Office said, because it only takes a few seconds for the moving water to knock someone off their feet and carry them away. 

Raleigh Willoughby, who works in the Sheriff’s Office’s Special Services Division, told the Times Standard that debris in the water can often cause people to become trapped in the current. 

“You’re looking at, you know, hundreds and hundreds of pounds of force even in a small rapid that can pin you up against an object,” he told the news outlet. 

According to Willoughby, a key reason the Trinity River has the most incidents in the region is because releases from the Lewiston Dam can rapidly change the water flow and temperature, the Times Standard reported. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to SFGATE’s request for additional information about the latest Trinity River death.