June 8, 2024 – Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office officials report that last weekend, on June 1st, 2024, at about 10:30 in the morning, the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue (SAR) Team responded to the area of Herring Creek in Strawberry in response to a call for service where a man reported he had fallen in the creek earlier and was now stuck on a rock in the middle of the creek and was unable to get to shore safely on his own.
At the time of the call SAR was conducting air operations training with California Highway Patrol CHP H40. SAR’s Swiftwater team left training and responded to the scene. Once on scene Swiftwater personnel located the man in an area with shallow, fast-moving water. The team crossed the creek using a team water crossing technique. This is a technique our team members train for, where members hold onto each other’s life vests to increase their combined weight and coordinate their movements to increase stability. They provided the man with a life jacket and helmet and used the team crossing technique to safely assist him across the creek and back to the trail.
We want to remind everyone that although temperatures are heating up, Tuolumne County waterways remain extremely cold and fast due to snowmelt. Please exercise caution when recreating near waterways within Tuolumne County. Cold, fast-running water can be dangerous to even the strongest swimmers due to the speed of the water, obstacles below the water’s surface and cold-water temperature.
Source & photos: Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office
