Man’s body recovered from Great Miami River after hours-long search

DAYTON — The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office was called to the area near RiverScape MetroPark after crews located a man who had slipped into the Great Miami River.

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News Center 7′s Taylor Robertson was on scene of the hours-long search and watched the entire search unfold.

Dayton Fire and Rescue spent hours looking for the man who had slipped while walking around on an embankment a little after 4 p.m., Saturday.

Crews arrived on scene at 111 E Monument Ave, where they quickly scattered manpower across nearby bridges and shorelines.

Dayton Fire and Rescue were originally dispatched after a witness called 911 saying two people had fallen into the river.

The first victim was rescued by a nearby person paddle boarding.

The 911 caller and other witnesses jumped into the river to search for the man and he had not resurfaced since he fell.

“He’s been under for at least a minute already,” the caller said.

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The caller was able to make it across the river looking for the victim but had no luck.

While speaking to a 911 dispatcher, he said, “You guys better hurry up, I don’t want to find this kid dead.”

The Wright-Patterson Dive Team and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources responded to the scene to help search for the missing man.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the Great Miami River is about 23 feet deep in Dayton.

Teams used sonar technology to help with the search. It is not clear how much this technology helped.

On scene, Taylor Robertson spoke with Dayton Fire District Chief Andrew Wiley who said the two people were walking around the embankment when they slipped and fell into the water.

Wiley told Robertson the search would continue until it was dark, but he was confident they would find the man.

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Around 7:30 p.m., three hours after the man fell into the river, crews discovered his body and transported it to shore.

Shortly after, the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office was called.

The identity of the man is not known.

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