Patterson Cemetery District, Stanislaus County, CA 

Submitted by Gale Stroud and Burta Herger 26 Aug 2007

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Bryant Ronald 890926 p1
Modesto Man Drowns When Boat Capsizes; A 55-year-old Modesto man drowned in the San Joaquin River Thursday
evening when an aluminum boat capsized near the Stanislaus County fishing access east of Patterson.   The body of
Ronald Bryant was recovered by county sheriff's department divers who spent several hours Friday searching the river
bottom just downstream from a small rapid. An autopsy was to be performed on the body on Monday. Bryant and his
brother-in-law Charles Clark, 31. of Patterson and two other companions were in an aluminum craft powered by an
outboard motor.  Shortly after 9 p.m.. they decided to head back to the boat ramp.  The two other adults were dropped at
the bank to fetch a vehicle and wait at the boat ramp, while Bryant and Clark tried to maneuver the craft up rough water
where the stream flows past a concrete-debris jetty near the east bank.  The boat flipped.  The two men tried to swim
together to the east bank, but only Clark made It.  He later told authorities he had a grip on his brother-in-law, but the
older man disappeared when he let go to remove a jacket that restricted his ability to swim.  Firefighters from Patterson
and Mountain View arrived and searched about one mile of riverside in darkness.  Medi-Flight flew overhead and used a
searchlight to probe the waters.  Emergency crews believed two individuals were in the water, before discovering Clark
standing on the shore.  The boat remained afloat and was recovered.