The following are just some of the flood water rescues first responders have dealt with during the intense storm that battered Southern California in the past 24 hours:
Long Beach (Los Angeles County):
Long Beach’s Swift Water Rescue team pulled two teenagers to safety from the Los Angeles River after they decided to go rafting in the middle of Sunday’s winter rainstorm, according to a fire department spokesman.
The rescue began about 5 p.m. at Long Beach Boulevard and the Los Angeles River, according to Long Beach Fire Department spokesman Jake Heflin.
“We dispatched resources at Long Beach Boulevard and the L.A. River to search for two individuals after their rafts were spotted empty in the river,” Heflin said.
About 15 minutes later firefighters pulled one young man from the fast- moving current and then around 5:25 p.m. firefighters found the second teen who had managed to pull himself out of the water.
“They were evaluated by firefighters and transported to a hospital for treatment of possible exposure,” Heflin said.
The pair rescued were 17 and 18 years old, he said.
Wilmington (Los Angeles County):
Five people were rescued from a homeless encampment in Wilmington because of flooding and one man was transported to a hospital for treatment of injuries, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
The rescue at a homeless camp at Pacific Coast Highway and Pine Creek Lane began about 3:30 p.m., fire department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said.
Heavy foliage and high water made it difficult for firefighters to reach the victims or initially, to determine how many people actually needed help, Stewart said.
A 39-year-old man was transported to a hospital for treatment, she said. That man was one of two people firefighters evacuated by boat.
Three other people walked out with assistance from firefighters, Stewart said.
No other injuries were reported.
Murrieta (Riverside County):
Firefighters rescued four people trapped in a car caught in fast-moving water Sunday.
Six Murrieta Fire units were involved in a swiftwater rescue that took place at around 5 p.m. in the area of Los Alamos Road and Monroe Avenue when a car was overtaken by rising water, according to firefighters.
The four people were brought to dry land about 20 minutes later.
No injuries were reported.
Garden Grove (Orange County):
Heavy rains in Garden Grove Sunday submerged vehicles, and tow trucks were called in to deal with mess.
Two vehicles were submerged on Hazard Street, and a building was evacuated in the 12000 block of Knott where attendees of a basketball tournament were evacuated after the facility was deemed unsafe by officials. Several vehicles in that building’s parking lot were also submerged.
Ocean Beach (San Diego County):
One of two women who were swept into the ocean by a large wave in Ocean Beach over the weekend has died, according to officials.
Lifeguards responded to the end of Bacon Street at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, after a good Samaritan had already rescued one of the women, according to San Diego Fire-Rescue Department Capt. Joe Amador.
It took at least four lifeguards about 40 minutes to rescue the second women, who was unconscious by the time she was pulled from the water, Amador said.
Lifeguards had difficulty finding her, since the ocean was covered in two feet of sea foam, making it hard for them to breath.
The second victim was transported to the UCSD Medical Center where she died Saturday night, Amador said.
The first victim, the good Samaritan and two lifeguards were all hospitalized and were expected to recover.
–City News Service and staff