July 29, 2026 – Kern County Sheriff’s Office officials report that at approximately 3:50 P.M. on July 25, 2026, a Kern County Sheriff’s Office Park Ranger was flagged down by a citizen on Highway 178 near mile marker 15 in the Kern River Canyon. The citizen reported that an adult female had fallen into the Kern River and had been swept downstream by the fast-moving current.
The Park Ranger immediately requested assistance, and deputies along with the Kern County Sheriff’s Office Air Support Unit responded to the area to search for the missing woman.
Shortly after arriving on scene, Air 1 began conducting a low-level search of the river corridor. On approximately the third search pass, a Tactical Flight Officer located the woman at the base of a steep cliff beneath a rock outcropping. She was clinging to the underside of the rock while partially submerged in the swift, cold water…