A woman who was swept away in California’s Kern River was rescued after a sheriff’s helicopter crew spotted her clinging to the underside of a rock. The dramatic rescue happened in Kern County, after a bystander alerted a Kern County Sheriff’s Office park ranger that the woman had fallen in and was being carried downstream, according to KMPH. Luckily, the woman survived and was carried to safety by paramedics.
The current had pulled the woman down the river until she was swept downstream. That’s when she was trapped underneath a cliff, where she held onto the underside of a rock while the water rushed over and around her. Video from the sheriff’s Air Support Unit shows the helicopter crew searching the river and finally spotting her in the creek.
From the air, the crew directed firefighters on the ground to her exact location. Rescuers threw her a life jacket to help keep her afloat in the current. They then used a rope system to pull her out of the water to safety.
The Kern River is one of the deadliest rivers in the country, thanks to its dangerous, strong currents, ice-cold water, and underwater hazards. They can overwhelm even experienced swimmers in no time. The woman who fell victim to it was evaluated by emergency medical personnel after being pulled from the water, and thankfully she didn’t sustain any injuries.
Why the Kern River Is So Dangerous
The Kern River earns its reputation from a combination of things that make it deadlier than it looks. The way it flows means it drops steeply, driving a fast, powerful current that’s much stronger than the calm surface often suggests. The water stays cold year-round too, because most of it comes from melting snow. Cold water can sap a swimmer’s strength in minutes, too, making it hard to hold on and keep swimming.
Authorities across California have repeatedly warned visitors that cold rivers can the Kern in particular has a long record of drownings. In a separate recent incident on the same river, a kayaker died and four others were rescued after their group fell into the water, with a sheriff urging people to stay out of the state’s waterways because they had become colder and faster than normal, as is usually the case when these accidents happen.
How Air and Ground Crews Work Together in a River Rescue
These types of water-related incidents require a helicopter and ground teams working together to make a successful rescue attempt. A person swept downstream can be pinned somewhere nearly impossible to see from the bank, as this woman was beneath a cliff. Having aircraft gives searchers the vantage point to locate someone quickly across a long stretch of river.
Once located, the person still has to be reached from the ground or the water, which is where it’s important to work together if possible. The helicopter crew here in this situation acted as spotters, directing firefighters to the exact spot rather than attempting a hoist. Then rescuers stabilized the woman with a life jacket before extracting her with a rope system, which is a standard technique that lets crews pull someone from shore without sending a rescuer into the worst of the current.