Bodies of 2 Brothers Who Tried to Cross River Discovered

YUBA CITY, Calif. — The bodies of two brothers missing on the Feather River were recovered Saturday.

Yuba City Police Capt. Scott Berry said three brothers, ages 13, 11 and 5, were fishing Friday evening from a beach just north of the 10th Street Bridge on the river’s west bank when they decided to cross the river.

The bodies of the 13- and 5-year old were recovered.

The 11-year-old boy managed to swim across the river into Marysville and call for help.

The boys began exploring through bushes on the riverbank when their parents left for a few minutes to buy bait, Berry said.

The brothers apparently stumbled upon a transient camp and some homeless men began yelling at them, Berry said. Police are not sure whether the boys were frightened or simply seeking adventure. But the boys took off their shoes and tried to cross the river.

“They’d fished here before and apparently walked across the river before,” Berry said. “But whether the current changed, or they fell into a hole and panicked, we don’t know.”

Dive teams from the Sutter County and Sacramento County sheriff’s departments discovered the 13-year-old’s body Saturday morning and the 5-year-old’s a few hours later.