Stranded tuber airlifted to safety at Hospital Flat

On July 20, Richard Wright, 42, of Hemet, was stranded in the Kern River on a rock near Hospital Flat until Kern County Fire personnel came to his rescue.

Cathy Perfect
Kern Valley Sun

Richard Wright, 42, of Hemet is one lucky man. On Tuesday, July 20, he was tubing in the Kern River upriver from Hospital Flat with his daughter and a friend’s son, when Wright became stranded on a rock. The juveniles made it to shore safely. No one in the party was wearing a life vest.

Around 1:40 p.m., the Kern County Fire Department received a call to assist Tulare County Sherriffs in rescuing Wright from the large rock in the middle of the rapids about one and one-half mile north of Hospital Flat Campground.

When asked why he wasn’t wearing a life jacket, Wright said, “We started way upriver, staying close to the shore. When we saw a rapid ahead, we got out of the river and walked around it then got back in the river again.” Wright said they group utilized this “strategy” again and again until they inevitably ran into trouble.

KCFD Helicopter 407, Engine 76 in Kernville, and US Forest Service responded to the rescue. Because of the swift, high-flowing water and rapids, crews were unable to reach the victim from the shoreline. Helicopter 407, along with a rescuer, hoisted the man from a rock to the nearby shore. Wright was uninjured and required no further medical treatment. “While the Kern River can be very inviting, it can also be extremely dangerous,” said Kern County Fire Captain Brandon Smith. “We would like to remind everyone to always wear a life vest if you choose to go into or near open bodies of water.”