Rescue crews return empty handed after report of male who fell into Spokane River

Spokane Fire Department search and rescue teams did not find anyone after receiving a “credible report” of a person who fell into the Spokane River on Tuesday morning, fire chief Brian Schaeffer said.

The fire department searched the river for nearly an hour after the report came in at about 11:15 a.m., Schaeffer said.

The initial report was that a male was swinging from a tree in Riverfront Park when he went into the river.

Search and rescue crews attempted to use drones to locate the missing person, but high winds prevented them, Schaeffer said. The river flow and the cold temperatures also prevented the crews from continuing their search, he said.

“This is the first surface water search we’ve had this year that has been this technical,” he said. “If someone sees something, we’ll return.”

That could be in a day, or it could be in the summer, when the river levels decrease, Schaeffer said. Often times, people who fall into the river will resurface down river and walk away without telling anybody out of embarrassment, he said.

A fire department crew inside of a rescue boat searched the area beneath the Monroe Street Bridge before returning back to the Peaceful Valley boat launch at about noon.