12-year-old Los Molinos girl drowns near Tobin on Sunday
The swimming hole at the Tobin Bridge has claimed another young victim. A 12-year-old Los Molinos girl was swimming with family and friends when the tragedy unfolded Sunday afternoon, Aug. 2. Plumas County Sheriff Todd Johns confirmed the news this morning.
Her drowning comes just a little over one year from the day that a 9-year-old boy lost his life in the same swimming hole.
Jeff Wilson, who lives in Tobin, said that the area is dangerous for swimmers because the large rocks provide pockets of suction that draw swimmers underneath the surface and holds them down. He said that signs in the area warn of changing water levels, but do not warn the public specifically about the drowning danger.
Plumas County Search and Rescue, the Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol responded to yesterday’s incident, as did two units from the Butte County Sheriff’ s Office.
UPDATE: The Plumas County Sheriff’s Office released this information today:
On 8/2/2020 the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a swimmer stuck in the rocks just below the Tobin Bridge on Hwy 70 in the Feather River.
During the investigation it was determined that the swimmer and a friend had attempted to swim across a large pool just below the Tobin Bridge. While swimming across the river, one of the subjects was caught in the current and was taken down river, pulled under water and lodged against a large boulder. Due to the hydrostatic pressure, (large amount of water going through a small hole) the swimmer was held under water for an extended period of time.
Butte County Search and Recuse attempted the recovery and after several hours and the deployment of a diver, they were able to recover the body of the victim
The Plumas County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank Butte County Search and Rescue as well as all the participants involved in this difficult incident. We would also like to express our sincere condolences to the family and friends of the decedent.
The Plumas County Sheriff’s Office, Plumas County Search and Rescue, Butte County Search and Rescue, Cal Fire, USFS, Quincy Fire, CHP were all involved in the effort.
