TWO BOYS DROWN IN L.A. RIVER.

Byline: Tracy Manzer Staff Writer

LONG BEACH - Two Long Beach boys drowned after scaling a retaining wall and falling into the Los Angeles River on Wednesday.

The first child, 8-year-old Ray Wells, was found near Anaheim Street, submerged in water 10 feet deep at about 6 p.m. He had been underwater for up to half an hour, said Bob Caldon, spokesman for the Long Beach Fire Department.

The second boy, 9-year-old Derrick Ashe, was found more than two hours later, about 15 feet from where Wells was found.

Both Wells and Ashe were taken to St. Mary Medical Center's Emergency Room. Wells was pronounced dead at 6:22 p.m. and Ashe was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m., said Wayne Chaney, a Fire Department spokesman.

Two Razor scooters, believed to be the boys', were found near where they entered the water, Caldon said.

Wells' mother was so distraught at the news of her child's death that she refused to enter the hospital to identify his body, Chaney said.

Wells' older brother, described as a teen, went in to make the identification instead. When authorities tried to talk to him, he said he had to talk to his mother first. When she heard the news, she fled down the street and he ran after her. Police officers found the devastated pair and brought them back to the hospital for counseling, Chaney said.

At 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, a witness called 911 to report that two children were struggling to stay afloat on a piece of wood in the water, Caldon said.

Fire Department Life Guard divers, who undergo rigorous and extensive training for underwater rescues, arrived within minutes and began searching the area.

About a half-hour later, Wells was found, put on a longboard and paddled to shore, where paramedics ran as they carried him to an ambulance.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) A Long Beach police officer checks a scooter found near where two boys drowned in the Los Angeles River Wednesday.

(2) Firefighters and lifeguards retrieve one of two boys who drowned Wednesday in the Los Angeles River.

Marilynn Young/Staff Photographer