Rescuers are still looking for a 5-year-old girl who was last seen playing on the banks of the swollen San Juan River Saturday afternoon.
About 160 people have been involved in the search for Sherreyia Pelt, Montezuma Creek, who is mentally handicapped, according to Helen Valdez, spokeswoman for the San Juan Sheriff's Office. The girl was last seen wandering toward the San Juan River on two occasions about 4 p.m. while playing with her brothers and sisters.Authorities were notified about 7:45 p.m., and a search using rescue dogs was conducted until 10 p.m. The search resumed Sunday and is continuing today.
When last seen, the girl was wearing a pink T-shirt, shorts and gym shoes.
So far, there has been no sign of the girl, Valdez said. The sheriff's office has had a boat on the river for the past two days.
"Due to the warm weather, the San Juan River is running high and fast, and at this time searchers have to assume the little girl did fall in the river," she said.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the San Juan River has been running at about 4,900 cubic feet per second for the past three days, which is "a little above normal" for late March, according to a spokeswoman.