Man jumps off bridge in Riverfront Park

A man climbed on top of the Howard Street Bridge in Riverfront Park about 2 p.m. today and plunged about 60 feet into a shallow part of the Spokane River to his death. The man, who has not been identified, jumped off the top of the blue steel bridge that runs from behind the old YMCA to Canada Island, said Spokane Police Officer Tim Moses. The Spokane Fire Department was called in to recover the body. “I would say instantly he was not with us any longer,” Moses said. “He didn’t suffer.” Police had received multiple calls about a man on the bridge and were en route when he jumped, he said. “We got calls from people at Anthony’s restaurant who saw it happen,” Moses said. “There were a lot of people on the footbridge and a lot of people in the park.” To help water rescue teams more easily recover the body, Avista slowed the water flow in that channel of the river, Moses said. Police found some documents on the bridge, Moses said, but it has not been confirmed that they belong to the man and so far none seem to reveal his identity.