BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- Hot temperatures for the Fourth of July weekend means that hundreds of people will likely be heading to the Kern River as a way to cool off.

But this holiday weekend is typically one of the Kern River's deadliest.

"The current and the river can be deceiving," warned Captain Aaron Lyman with the Kern County Search and Rescue Team. "There may be some calm spots, but you get out a bit further and the current can pull you out. If you can't swim you have no chance."

Just hours after giving that warning, the team went right to work and saved the life of Hermon Gonzalez, who had gotten caught in the river at Hart Park.

"The current was taking me really hard and I wanted to get to the side," recalled Gonzalez. "I saw a branch with a rope so I just grabbed on to it. I was just holding on for dear life."

The river ended up taking his tube and his shorts, but Gonzalez knows that it could have easily taken his life.

"It is powerful," Gonzalez said of the river. "I didn't think it was that powerful when I went in, I misjudged it real good."

Gonzalez considers himself lucky and has a warning of his own for other swimmers who are heading to the river. "Don't go near it just admire from a distance."

If you plan on heading to the river this weekend make sure you have a life vest and know how to use it properly, but the best advice to stay safe is to stay out of the water entirely.

The Search and Rescue Team has made 10 water rescues since Memorial Day.