Rescue Efforts Called Off For Man Who Fell Through River Ice

DETROIT – Rescue efforts to try to save a mam who fell through the ice on the Detroit River Wednesday night were called off, according to reports.

The man, who has not been identified, was with a couple other people when he went out onto the ice just off of Belle Island at 5 p.m. Wednesday and began jumping up and down, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard told the Associated Press.

Crews were searching for the man on Wednesday, including helicopter searches, which were used to locate the man, according to reports. Crews were not able to get to the spot where the man had fallen through the ice because the ice was too thin, the spokesman said. The reports indicated rescue attempts were called off around 9 p.m. Wednesday.

The man was walking on the frozen river near the 7,000 block of East Jefferson Street and a report was called into 911, saying that the man had fallen through the ice. The Coast Guard spokesman said that the thickness of the ice and darkness prevented crews from successfully rescuing the man, the Detroit News reported.

On Thursday, Detroit Police officials said that the search has been called off after rescue attempts were unsuccessful as of late Wednesday night. Police wrote in a social media update on Thursday that they have not located any abandoned vehicles on Belle Isle or along the riverfront where the man was reported to have entered the water.

“It’s not looking like this will have a good outcome,” Lt. Jeremiah Schiessel told the AP.