Man without life vest rescued from rocks on Chattahoochee River
A man was cited for not having a life vest Tuesday after rescue personnel were called to Chattahoochee River beneath the 13th Street Bridge.
The unidentified man was turned over to Columbus police about 8:55 p.m. after members of the Columbus Department of Fire & Emergency Medical
Services launched boats and rescued the man from the rising waters on the rocks, said Battalion Chief Bryan Watson.
Watson said authorities were called about 8:40 p.m. about a man on the rocks after Georgia Power started generating power. Sending more water down the rivers caused the waters to rise quickly, Watson said. It took about 15 minutes to get to the stranded man.
The man indicated the waters rose quicker than he realized. “You can be having a good time and all of a sudden you can’t get back,” Watson said of the quickly changing river when power is generated.
The arrest comes more than a week after Darren Pate, 32, was taken into custody on June 16. Police said he was disorderly while intoxicated and on the river without a life vest in same area.
Life vests are required by law for anyone in the area along Columbus’ whitewater course from North Highlands dam to the south end of the Columbus Convention & Trade Center.
Ben Wright: 706-571-8576, @bfwright87
This story was originally published June 27, 2017 at 10:03 PM with the headline "Man without life vest rescued from rocks on Chattahoochee River."