SANTEE, Calif. (KGTV) — Firefighters removed a body from a creek in Santee Tuesday afternoon after heavy rain fell in the area. According to the Santee Fire Department, crews responded to Forrester Creek, near the intersection of Mission Gorge Road and Carlton Hills Boulevard, after some bystanders flagged them down.
The firefighters worked to extricate the body safely out of the flowing water around 1:30 p.m., according to Santee Fire Chief Justin Matsushita.
One challenge for firefighters was the thick vegetation the body was stuck on.
According to Chief Matsushita, this is the same creek where two other bodies were found following the Jan. 22 storm; however, the location this time around was about a quarter to a half mile farther south and east. Fire crews have searched the creek for other potential victims following the historic flooding.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the department cannot confirm where the body came from exactly, but the chief estimates the body was in the water for more than two days. All the incidents are still under investigation.
Although there have been some reports of missing persons nearby, Matsushita says it is unclear at this point if this person is connected to any of those cases.
The chief says his department gets a lot of fire calls in this area, usually because of fires started near homeless encampments.
