A swift water rescue team helped a man trapped on a sandbar in the Escondido Creek according to Escondido police.
The man was caught in the middle of rising water near Harmony Grove Road and Howard Avenue just west of Escondido.
A spokesperson with the Escondido fire department said they got a call around 1:25 p.m. from someone living in a nearby mobile home park who heard a man crying for help.
Escondido Creek runs just north of Valley Parkway through the city of Escondido and along Harmony Grove Road.
Just before 3 p.m., the San Diego swift water rescue team pulled Mark Claudius, 49, to safety. He appeared to be uninjured but was taken to Palomar Medical Center as a precaution. Claudius was living in a camp and told firefighters everyone else made it out but the water level rose too fast for him.
The current was moving rapidly in the area where Claudius was stuck and firefighters say he could have been pulled under. According to a fire spokesperson, Claudius was dragged at least 100 yards by the current.
