Rescuers work to save two from L.A. River

[UPDATED 12:17 p.m.] In the aftermath of heavy rain from Friday’s powerful Southern California storm, Los Angeles firefighters pulled a man and woman from the rain-swollen Los Angeles River.

The man was rescued first from an area of the river with thick, partially submerged trees near the intersection of Glendale Boulevard and Riverside Drive. He told officials his wife was still in the river.

The woman was more difficult to locate -- she could be heard by bystanders yelling occasionally as Swift Water team members tried to find her. A fire department helicopter made low passes over the rain-swollen river, the blades churning spray on the spectators gathered on the banks.

The woman was finally located, brought to shore and immediately taken away by ambulance. Her condition was not immediately known. The man had not suffered injuries but was hypothermic, according to officials.

-- Joseph Serna, Amanda Covarrubias, Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times