On August 18, 2019, Merced County Sheriff’s Dive Team searched the Merced River near Santa Fe and El Capitan for a male who fell into the Merced River. The Merced County Dive Team spent hours attempting to locate the male, but were unsuccessful.
In the early morning of August 19, 2019, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office Water Rescue and Recovery Team would resume searching the area.
At around 8:45 am, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office Water Rescue and Recovery Team located a deceased male in the Merced River. The unidentified person was located about 40 yards from the area where a man disappeared into the river yesterday, according to the Merced County Sheriff’s Office.
The original report came in that the male subject was riding his horse near the river and attempted to cross the river. During that time, it was believed that the horse lost its footing and stepped off into a deep area of the river causing the horse to start swimming. It is unknown if the subject was thrown or dismounted from the horse, but the horse swam back to shore without his rider and the horse was unharmed.
There does not appear to be any signs of foul play, however, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office Investigations Bureau and Coroner Bureau are investigating the incident, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
