KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
A search is underway for Valencia High School graduate and actress Naya Rivera, known for her work on the television show “Glee,” who disappeared at Lake Piru Wednesday and is presumed to have drowned.
Naya Rivera, 33, of Los Angeles, grew up in the Santa Clarita Valley and graduated from Valencia High School in 2005. She is best known for her role in the musical comedy television series “Glee” as cheerleader Santana Lopez.
Ventura County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) officials stated that deputies responded to a report of a boy alone on a boat Wednesday at around 4:48 p.m. at the Lake Piru reservoir and recreation area, which is about a half-hour drive from Santa Clarita.
Rivera’s 4-year-old son Josey was found asleep on a pontoon boat that had been rented some three hours earlier, according to the VCSO.
Two hours later, the VCSO reported that a search for a possible drowning victim at Lake Piru was underway on scene, and that a Search and Rescue Dive Team was on the way to the incident.
At 10:30 p.m., the VCSO confirmed Rivera’s identity. At the time, 50 searchers from various agencies had been searching in the air, in the water, and on the ground with divers, personnel and air coverage from helicopters and drones.
The missing person at Lake Puru has been identified as Naya Rivera, 33, of Los Angeles. SAR operation will continue at first light. @VCAirUnit @fillmoresheriff @Cal_OES pic.twitter.com/bC3qaZS3Ra
— Ventura County Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 9, 2020
“The search for Naya Rivera will continue this morning at Lake Piru. The lake will be closed to the public while search operations continue,” read a Thursday morning statement from the VCSO. “Dive teams from throughout the region will be assisting us through mutual aid.”
On Thursday morning, the VSCO announced that they would be switching their efforts from a search and rescue operation to a search and recovery operation.
“Now that doesn’t change anything in the efforts that we’re putting forth to locate her, but that just changes the title in a sense,” said Chris Dyer, public information officer with the VSCO in an interview with FOX 11 on Thursday. “We are presuming that an accident happened and we’re presuming that she drowned in the Lake.”
Dyer went on to state that there were no signs of foul play or that “anything went wrong besides a tragic accident.”
The goal of the VSCO is to bring Rivera home to her family, so they can have closure, according to VSCO officials.
The search for Naya Rivera will continue this morning at Lake Piru. The lake will be closed to the public while search operations continue. Dive teams from throughout the region will be assisting us through mutual aid. @VCAirUnit @Cal_OES @fillmoresheriff pic.twitter.com/q6LsHd8xaT
— Ventura County Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 9, 2020
VSCO officials believe that Rivera and her child visited the lake Wednesday afternoon and rented a pontoon boat, as evidenced by records and surveillance camera footage.
The boat traveled to the north end of the lake, and when the boat’s rental became overdue at about 4 p.m., an employee at the boat rental shack went searching for the overdue boat, according to Dyer.
The employee reportedly found the boat on the north end of the lake, where he discovered Josey alone on the boat, while Rivera was nowhere to be found.
Search efforts were physically stopped at 10:00 p.m. due to dangerous conditions for searchers in the lake. Dyer explained that during the day there are only 8 to 10 inches of visibility in the water, and a combination of large debris and sharp variations in the depths make for dangerous conditions.
“I was on the boat last night, it can go from about 40 to 50 feet (deep) and jump back up to 6 to 3-4 feet so there’s a lot of uneven terrain under the water,” Dyer said. “During the night time the search effort continues with optimal planning and figuring out how to best optimize all of our resources for today’s efforts.”
Lake Piru’s conditions have led to several drownings and other searches, According to Los Angeles Times, about seven people drowned in the lake between 1994 and 2000. Although there are generally several lifeguards on duty, as well as rangers, the current can be strong, making it difficult for experienced and non-experienced swimmers alike.
In 2000, park officials determined that strong winds, chilly waters, and the 160-foot depth is often to blame for drowning swimmers. They also noted that a vast majority of drowning victims had been swimming in “restricted waters.”
The area in which Rivera and her son were believed to have been was open to swimming, to Dyer’s understanding.
Multiple teams of professional search & rescue personnel are actively searching Lake Piru for clues to the location of Naya Rivera. With over 80 people involved in the search right now, we are using helicopters, boats, ATV vehicles, and ground personnel to try and locate her. pic.twitter.com/o2bN5sQFms
— Ventura County Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 9, 2020
As of 10:27 a.m. Thursday, VSCO and the Ventura County Sheriff Search and Rescue, Ventura County Fire, Los Angeles County Dive Operations, Ventura County Aviation, and drones were working together in teams of professional search & rescue personnel who were “actively searching” Lake Piru for clues to Rivera’s location with over 80 people involved using air, water and ground coverage to help in the search.
Additional specialized dive teams have been called for from Los Angeles County, San Luis Obispo County, and Tulare County, VSCO officials said.
“I can’t stress enough that this just seems like a tragic accident,” Dyer said. “(They) come out here for a great day and something bad happens.”
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I know this lake very well, I’ve been boating here for years at the level the water is now by the dam is no more than 80 feet deep And at the north end it runs around 20-30 feet some spots are very shallow and there are a lot of trees under the surface in the north end. The wind picks up around noon almost everyday day there and white caps are common. It’s not a very safe place to swim. Very sad
This is a very sad situation. It’s hard to understand why someone would put a life vest on their child but not wear one themselves when it was provided for them. It’s so easy to do. Water is fun, but it’s also dangerous. Too many people think “I know how to swim, I don’t need a vest” but things can go bad very quickly, especially when exhaustion sets in. Very sad for that poor boy who apparently watched his mother drown.
Why is this lake still open? Death trap. Knowing what they have known since 1994 with several drownings having occurred at this reservoir. Ventura County Officials have a duty and obligation to shut the lake down to the public indefinitely. Shut The Lake down indefinitely so another tragedy never happens again. It makes me sick to my stomach. If you know the terrain underneath the water is unsafe, in addition to sharp drops in depth, why are you allowing the public to swim and boat there? You have a duty to protect the public from harm. Shut the lake down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Lake Piru should no longer exist. Everyone stay away from this lake. Do not ever bring your kids here, your family, anyone you love. Several drowning reported since 1994 disgusts me. They continue to allow this man made reservoir to remain open to the public. As I have read, many more drownings have occurred here, the fact that you let people swim and boat here knowing what you know about this reservoir and labeling it as a “recreation area” is disturbing and disgusting. How many more drownings have to occur before you shut this reservoir down. One death in this reservoir was one too many and should never have occurred. All of these drownings could have been prevented if the County was proactive in shutting this reservoir down.
I’ve been going to this lake for over 35 years. I’ve launched my boat there hundreds of times. If you follow the rules you should be fine. I’ve also rented boats there and one of the rules is no swimming from rented boats. If you swim from your own boat you must be anchored in a cove no less then 60 feet from the shore. Very sad what happened to this young lady I hope others learn from this.
To anonymous—
How can you be so stupid?! Many have drowned at Castaic, as well as Pyramid in the last 20 years as well! A BUNCH! I guess you think it’s the lake’s fault, and if anyone dies there for whatever reason, it should be shut down! What a complete moron you are! You’d be happy if there was NO body of water to play on here in the desert! Most lakes have old brush or trees on the bottom, too, I hate to tell ya! DUH!!! Tell you what! Listening to YOU is disturbing and disgusting! Piru is actually more shallow than either Pyramid OR Castaic! So NOW WHAT?! I s’pose they should shut down ALL lakes AND swimming pools, since sometimes people drown while swimming there, too! Geez! What an idiot!
They finally found her! Condolences to her family. They get their closure. One thing I have to say, though, is if me, or anyone I know goes missing somewhere, that they look for 5 or 6 straight days for US like they did for her! Anyone else, (not an actor/actress, or public figure) and they’d be done after 2 DAYS of searching! Doesn’t seem really fair they use all these resources for her, but not for the average ‘Joe’! Sad…..but that’s the way it seems to work!