Peter McCarthy helped to save James L. Bernardoni from drowning, Dragerton, Utah, June 25, 1971. A Boy Scout group was on a trip down the Green River when their rubber rafts, which were bound together, were carried into debris around a large boulder at midstream. Some of the rafts capsized; but all of the party managed to get out except James, 10, and Peter, 14. James was without a life jacket as he and Peter were swept downstream. Peter told James, who was floundering in the deep water, to hang onto his life jacket. Floating low in the water because both were supported by the one jacket, Peter offered James reassurance as they were carried five miles downstream in about two hours. James then noticed a limb of a tree extending into the water. He let go of Peter, moved to the limb, and made his way to the bank and safety. By then Peter had disappeared from sight; and his body later was found farther downstream.
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