Man, woman stranded in LA River rescued as storm hits SoCal

A man and a woman were rescued on the morning of Dec. 28 when they became stranded on a small island in the rain-bloated Los Angeles River in Atwater Village, authorities said.

LOS ANGELES - A man and a woman who became stranded on a small island in the Los Angeles River were rescued early Monday as a powerful storm hit Southern California, fire authorities said.

The incident was reported just before 2:30 a.m. in the LA River just south of Glendale Boulevard in Atwater Village, according to Brian Humphrey with the Los Angeles Fire Department.

A witness contacted authorities after he saw two people surrounded by water that was between 3 to 4 feet high moving 5 to 8 mph, Humphrey said.

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A Swift Water Rescue team tethered an inflatable rescue boat to a secure area and brought the people to safety in 65 minutes while an LAFD helicopter searched the area to make sure no other people or pets were in danger, he said.

The rescued pair declined transport to a hospital and were released at the scene, Humphrey said.

CNS contributed to this report.