Calif.man drowns in Santiam River trying to help daughter

LYONS, Ore. (AP) — Authorities say a California man drowned in a river south of Portland as he tried to help his 12-year-old daughter, who appeared to be in distress.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office says emergency crews responded to a report of a swimmer who had gone underwater in the Little North Fork of the Santiam River at about 2:10 p.m. Thursday.

Authorities say people nearby at North Fork State Park had gotten 29-year-old Baltazar Tellovelasco of Oxnard, Carifornia, out of the water by the time emergency responders arrived.

Authorities say efforts to resuscitate Tellovelasco were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Deputies say Tellovelasco had gone into the water to assist his daughter. She was able to make it out safely.