The sheriff’s office says a search is continuing Monday for a 32-year-old man who reportedly fell into the river near the mouth of the Kern River Canyon late Saturday afternoon and was swept downstream.
Earlier Saturday, the body of a 31-year-old Los Angeles man was recovered by searchers after it was spotted floating in the river near Keyesville. His name has not been released. He reportedly was not wearing a life vest.
At least six people have died in the river since June 1, and several other individuals are missing.
Kern River Has a Deadly History
Despite signs intended to warn swimmers about the river’s cold, fast-moving water, people continue to tempt fate.
The signs, including this famous one, are periodically updated with the river’s death toll since 1968. The next time the signs are updated, the number will eclipse 300.
Fifteen people died in 2017 alone. That was, like 2019, a heavy rainfall and snowpack year. Nine people drowned in the river in 2011, another year of powerful runoff from the Southern Sierra.
(Associated Press contributed to this report.)
