Water levels and flows on area rivers are looking similar to conditions in 2017 when there were more than double the water rescues compared to average years. “Everyone should treat the river like a wild animal,” said Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District Captain Jeff Frye. “Enjoy it from afar.” A strong current on the Stanislaus River took the lives of two people in 2017’ last Sunday, it swept 5-year-old Matilda Ortiz downstream and out of the grasp of a bystander who briefly had a hold of her. Her body was recovered Wednesday after river flows were slowed and the water level dropped about two feet to aid in the search.