Sanger, Calif. — An eight-year-old girl died and her four-year-old brother was missing after they were swept away Sunday in a central California river swollen from quickly melting mountain snows.

Deputies responded round 2 p.m. following a report of youngsters missing in the Kings River close to Pine Flat Dam, based on the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

The workplace stated the youngsters, their mom and an grownup good friend entered the water off the shoreline a few mile down from the dam. They were attempting make their method out to a selected rock to climb on when the present carried the children away.     

About an hour later, deputies discovered the physique of the little girl, officers stated. They did not instantly say how she died.

A seek for the 4-year-old continued late Sunday and was to proceed in a single day and Monday, CBS Fresno, Calif. affiliate KGPE-TV reported.

Further north, authorities were investigating after a physique was discovered Friday in Folsom Lake northeast of Sacramento. And two individuals remained missing after being swept away by the American River in latest weeks, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office stated.

Authorities have warned individuals to train warning alongside rivers the place excessive water ranges and stronger flows are creating harmful situations.

“Last winter’s heavy snowpack is melting down into our rivers, and the water is colder (45 degrees), stronger and higher – it will remain that way for at least the next month, possibly longer,” the Placer County Sheriff’s Office stated in an announcement final week. “Be river-wise, this year IS different.”

Fresno County Sheriff’s Deputy Lt. Brandon Pursell informed KGPE Sunday’s tragedy in the Kings River was “100% preventable.”

Pursell says the water in the Kings River will not be solely icy and chilly, it is flowing at 13,000 Cubic Feet per Second (CFS), making it troublesome for even an grownup to handle.

The sheriff’s workplace stated each the Kings and San Joaquin Rivers are closed to leisure customers and have been since March 14, and violators might be hit with fines of at the least $225.

“Numerous closure signs are placed along the waterways informing the public of the importance of staying out of the water,” the workplace stated. “The conditions of our waterways will only become more dangerous heading into summer as snow melts and dams release even more water into the rivers.  The water remains cold, in the low 50s, the current is swift and trees serve as dangerous obstacles.

“There isn’t any timetable of when rivers shall be reopened for leisure use.”