Patterson Cemetery District, Stanislaus County, CA 

Submitted by Gale Stroud and Burta Herger 26 Aug 2007

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Velenzuela Rocio 990720 p4
Modesto Girl Drowns at Laird Park During a Family Gathering      Rocio Velenzuela;  A 9 year old Modesto girl, Rocio
Velenzuela, drowned in the San Joaquin River at Laird Park on Sunday.  Velenzuela was at the park with her father,
Enrique Mendoza, and numerous other family members when she fell into the river at the east end of the park, near the
Stanislaus County Honor Farm.  "These rivers sometimes have shallow shelves that may only be few inches or feet deep
and then they drop off sharply," said Stanislaus County Sheriff's Deputy Tammy Drew.  "Well, the girl was running along
one of those with some of her cousins when she accidentally ran off the edge and into the deep water.  She tried to fight
it, but the current got her."
Rescue Fails:  Drew said that two of the party members apparently jumped in the river after Velenzuela, but they were
unable to pull her ashore.  Someone called 911 on a cell phone at 2:55 p.m. to report the accident , and the Ceres and
Modesto fire departments responded.  "They had boats and went into the water right away," said Drew.  "AirMed was
there, flying over head looking for her."
Body Found:  A dive team arrived later that afternoon, chose a spot to search based on the river currents and went into
water at 4:42 p.m.  Velenzuela's body was recovered at 4:48 p.m. approximately 30 yards downstream from where she
fell into the river.  "These rivers are dangerous because of the currents and underbrush," said Drew.  "No one should be
swimming in them.  They're just very dangerous."