Body found in Garden Grove flood channel is 34-year-old male resident

A man found dead in a rain-swollen flood-control channel Friday morning has been identified by police as Mario Alberto Hernandez, 34, of Garden Grove.

A pedestrian saw the body, clad only in blue jeans, in the flood control channel on the east side of Ward Street north of McFadden Avenue just before 7:30 a.m. The body was stuck on the center pillar of the channel tunnel that goes under Ward Street.

The Garden Grove Fire Department performed a swift-water rescue to retrieve the body from the fast-flowing current.

Garden Grove Police detectives and the O.C Coroner’s Office are investigating the circumstances of the death, the cause of which at this time is undetermined.