ARLINGTON – “Floaties” apparently are not a strong enough safety device for the Stillaguamish River.

Four people stranded along the banks of the river west of Arlington were saved by Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue after a three-hour ordeal. The four were in the river with no lifejackets when one of the floaties “popped”, forcing the group to get out at a very steep hillside in the brush. Someone in the group called 9-1-1, and a SAR deputy responded, along with a patrol deputy, two firefighters and two SAR volunteers.

A 22-year-old Everett woman was transported to Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett with minor injuries.

The other members of the party included a 25-year-old Marysville woman, a 23-year-old Everett man and a 17-year-old Tacoma woman.

The sheriff’s office advises that life jackets be worn when using the county’s rivers, lakes and shorelines.